Thoughtful(23)
The corresponding screams were so loud my ears started ringing. Smiling, I scanned the fans starting to crowd around the stage. Kiera and Denny were still at the table, but they both had ear-to-ear grins. “How the fuck are you, Seattle?”
The girls closest to me started jumping and hollering in response. From the side of the room, I could see Griffin taking his damn sweet time getting to the stage. Frowning, I said into the microphone, “We seem to be down a D-Bag. If any of you can play bass, please feel free to hop up here and join me.”
About a half dozen girls wasted no time in scrambling onstage with me. Sam was on them in an instant, pulling them back into the crowd. It made me laugh, but Sam shot me more than one irritated glance. Griffin did too. He ran onto the stage so fast you’d think a naked girl was up here. Grabbing his bass, he looked my way and shouted, “Bite me, asshole.”
Matt and Evan laughed with me as Griffin hurried to get himself ready. Giving him time, I addressed the crowd again. “Sorry about that. Looks like we’re all here after all.” Kiera and Denny were laughing, along with a good section of the back of the bar. The girls closest were still shrieking their heads off, oblivious to the humor. “Any requests?” I asked them.
“You!” A couple people shouted that, and from different sections of the room. I scanned the bar, but I couldn’t tell who’d said it.
Laughing, I responded with, “Maybe later. If you’re real nice.” Whistles and catcalls followed that remark, and I wondered if anyone would try to take me up on the offer. I looked back at Evan, and he gave me a thumbs-up. Everyone was ready. Twisting back to the bar, I said into the microphone, “We’ve got newbies here tonight, so how about an old one?”
Without looking, I pointed back at Evan, cuing him to start the song. He tapped it out, then started the intro. Matt came in a few beats later. Biting my lip, I kept time by swaying my body while I waited for my turn. Griffin came in a half beat behind me, and then we really took off.
I loved starting off with this song, because I got to curse in the chorus. Not only was it fun, but it loosened up the crowd, made them go nuts—not that this crowd had a problem with that; they were used to us here, and were always ready for a good time. It helped in new bars though. Watching Kiera’s reaction to it was outstanding.
“You knocked me down, you fucked me up. I’m holding still, waiting for you to do it again. Call me crazy, but I can’t get enough.”
She was gaping when she first heard the line, then she was laughing, then she buried her head in Denny’s shoulder. Her being entertained by one of my songs gave me a weird sense of satisfaction. It was a perfect way to start the night.
We played quite a few songs after that, the crowd laughing, screaming, and dancing, wholeheartedly enjoying themselves. Denny and Kiera spent most of the time on the fringes of the crowd, dancing along to the music together. When I grabbed my guitar and slowed the set down with a mellower song, they started slow dancing. It gave me a huge smile to see Denny so happy. He looked satisfied, like everything in his life was just the way he wanted it. Seeing him that way, my mood started mirroring his. All of us living together was going to be great—almost like a family of sorts.
They were softly kissing with their arms tight around each other, a picture of perfect peace. Kiera laid her head on Denny’s shoulder. Her head was facing toward me, and I gave her a warm, friendly smile. Then I winked at her, ’cause I just couldn’t resist making her blush. She was clearly surprised by my friendly move, and I laughed and looked away. Some of the fans right in front of me started fanning themselves like I was making them overheat. That made me laugh too.
We played one more fast song, a fan favorite, to close out the night. Knowing it was the end, some of the girls started screaming for an encore; they did that sometimes, which seemed weird to me. We were here every weekend. If they really wanted more, they knew where to find us.
I spoke into the microphone, and they quieted to hear me. “Thank you for coming out tonight.” I waited for the brief burst of screams to diminish, then raised a finger. “I want to take a second to introduce you all to my new roommates.” Not able to resist the temptation to make Kiera’s face fill with color, I pointed at her and Denny. She looked like she wanted to either kill me or melt into the floor. Maybe both. Denny moving to her side was probably the only thing keeping her upright. And in the bar.
“Ladies, the tall, dark, and handsome one would be Denny. Don’t get too attached though, that hottie beside him would be his girlfriend, Kiera.” Kiera hid her face in Denny’s shoulder, mortified. Wondering if she’d convince Denny to move out before the morning, I playfully told the crowd, “Now, you’ll all be happy to know that Kiera is joining the happy little family here at Pete’s, starting Monday night.”