Backstage Demands Read Online Free PDF Page B

him to talk, wanted him to vent his feelings so she could have a better idea of what was going on in his head. Some women got all vulnerable after sex, and even though it wasn't so bad in that way with Jen, she was still a little vulnerable. It was kind of cute to see. And boy did she ever look good during her afterglow. Jen seemed to be floating in herself somehow. Rick thought he'd never seen anyone look so radiant before in his entire life.
    “You've got to do the tour, Rick,” Jen said. “I know shit is fucked up the way they threw you under the bus by not telling you, but you did sign papers with them. That means that you could be on the hook for any of the damages you cause. So if you were to not go and that meant they had to cancel the tour, or say that they went ahead with the tour, but things couldn't get off the ground without you there, then you could maybe be in trouble. I'd just hate to see that happen, you know?”
    Rick thought about it for a second.
    “You know what,” Rick said. “If you come with me on the tour then I'll go on the tour. But I don't want you to come in the capacity of a manger. I just want you to be there with me. That way we can see if we could really be something, you know? I guess maybe I sound a little emo, not so much like the hard ass punk rocker that people think I am or make me out to be.”
    Jen's mouth dropped open, but she didn't look shocked like in terror shocked, just more shocked like she hadn't seen it coming. Which was fine with Rick if she hadn't thought that he would ask her to come along in the capacity of a maybe lover. She should be shocked. But Rick figured that asking was better than not asking. Because who cares if she shot him down. It would be better than having to go the rest of his life not knowing what the answer could have been. Rick was nervous about the answer, though. He really did want her to come along on the tour and hadn't realized just how much he wanted her to come along on the tour until that very moment.
    “Well,” Jen started. “I hadn't really known if I was going to come along. The Collective had kind of made it sound like I was going to, but now, after everything has happened, I'm not too hot on the whole taking everything they say at face value. I can tell you this, though if you say that I have to go on the tour or you won't go then they'll let me go on the tour.”
    “So you'll go!?” Rick said.
    Jen jumped up from her chair, letting her towels fall to the flower, and hugged Rick.
    “Yes!” she said.
    Rick beamed as she hugged him. He ran his fingers through her red, curly hair and gave her ass a playful slap. He wanted to fool around with her again, but they had to get ready to head to the charity gig. They both got dressed and headed out the door, both of them with a little smile and some pep in their step. Rick started his walk toward the gig while Jen made her way home to change, then head back to the venue in her car.
    That night everything went well. The show went off without a problem and they raised plenty of money for charity. It wasn't really the normal crowd for Cull the Unfaithful, but they weren't complaining. After the gig when Rick talked to the Collective and pitched the idea that he bring Jen along as a friend they were fine with it. They kept trying to pressure him into signing on for a tour next year, even though it was so early that it was almost foolish to offer it since things could change so much in so little time—but Rick just laughed. He didn't care if people thought he owed them something when he didn't owe them a God damn thing. It was one thing to follow his contract through to the end, but he wasn't going to sign on to anything else just to make a bunch of jerk off industry people happy.
    “How did things go?” Jen asked when he met her outside.
    She was leaning against her car, which was parked to the side of the venue, looking good as ever. Rick couldn't believe how lucky he was.
    “They went