"How were your down days?" Chris says cheerfully, plopping into the set beside Stevie on the plane.
"Perfect," says Stevie. It was true. It had only been about a couple weeks since she and Lindsey started spending nights together, but the tour had definitely taken a turn for the better. The last two days were spent in a suite with Lindsey, phones and clothes off. Getting up for the early flight was awful.
"Do tell."
Stevie smiles slyly, quickly deciding whether she should lie or just keep quiet. "I caught up on sleep, did a little writing. Talked to my family." All of those things were true, really. They just weren't the highlights. "How about you?"
They chat idly for a while until she sees Lindsey board and is suddenly totally distracted. He slips into the seat behind her and leans over the top of her seat to kiss her head. She feels herself blush, avoiding Chris's prying stare as Lindsey steps into the aisle to finish loading his things into the overhead. Mick calls him to the front of the plane, giving Chris time to continue her interrogation.
"What the bloody hell was that?"
"What?"
"Stevie, I saw the way you two looked at each other."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Uh huh," says Chris, obviously totally unconvinced. "If you two are shagging again..."
"Christine!"
"I mean it! Don't do anything stupid."
She shakes her head, trying desperately to find a way to end the conversation. Sharon comes to her rescue, piling into the row with Stevie and Chris and Stevie jumps on the opportunity to change the subject. The idea of people already being suspicious is mildly unnerving. Subtlety had never been their strong suit, and she's already doubting their ability to keep it quiet.
By the time she finishes her scheduled interviews and gets ready, she's dying to be alone with Lindsey again. It's most definitely another addiction. She's in her dressing room with the girls, who have refused to leave her side all day. Maybe Karen tipped them off. No, she knows better. Stevie would kill her. Regardless, she tells them she needs to go to the bathroom and slips out, running into Lindsey in the hallway. This was not the plan. They're surrounded by crew members and she stops awkwardly, not really sure what to do. He nods to his right and leads her around the corner, where they can duck out of view for a minute.
"My room tonight," he says, handing a key to her. She slips it into her bra and touches the side of his face, smiling up at him, her eyes getting lost in his eyes for a minute. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm good," she says, holding back. Talking would ruin everything. "See you in a minute," she says, rushing back down the hallways to her room. She passes Lindsey's assistant in the hallway, who shoots her a raised eyebrow that she completely ignores before ducking out of view.
Once backstage, Lindsey grabs her and pushes her against a road case, kissing her deeply. They're the first two band members back here and it's too dark to see anything in the corner. His hand travels up her thigh, and he bites gently at the curve of her neck before she stops him.
"Are you trying to get us in trouble?"
"I haven't kissed you all day."
"Later," she says, smacking his butt before escaping.
By the end of the show, they're both ready to disappear to the hotel. As soon as they're finished, she retreats to her dressing room, quickly changing out of her stage clothes. She wrangles her long blonde waves into a pony tail, still completely wired. Knowing Karen will come get her when the car is ready, she gets down on the floor with Sulamith, talking to the girls about the show. Painfully aware of every passing second, Stevie realizes that it's been too long. Karen never takes this long to come get her.
She finally comes into the room, talking on the phone. "I've got to go, Liz. I'm with her now. Let me ask her what she wants to do about this... I know... Thanks. We'll call you back."
"Do about what?"
"About THIS," she says angrily, shoving her iPad in Stevie's face. Confused, she looks down and sees a woman with her head thrown back, a man kissing her neck.
"Oh my God." All the color drains from her face as she realizes exactly who it is.
"There are more." Karen swipes the screen, flipping through a series of shots. "How the hell are we going to handle this?"
"What's going on?" Lori snatches the iPad and her eyes widen in surprise. "Wait, what? When was this?"
"Tonight," spits Karen, turning back to Stevie. "Look, if you two can't keep your hands off each other while you're alone there's not much I can do about it, but in public? Are you new to this or something? Were you trying to get caught?"
"Who took those?"
"I don't know, Stevie. It doesn't matter. Someone tweeted it, and it's well on its way across the internet now. Liz has someone monitoring it, but this is going to be a big fucking problem for Buckingham."
"I need to go talk to him."
"He already knows."
"Fuck. His hand is up my dress!" Stevie snatches the iPad again, her voice rising in pitch as the reality of the situation sinks in. She stares at the screen in disbelief. "There wasn't anyone there," she says.
"Clearly you're wrong," says Karen.
"Have you two made a habit of hooking up backstage? Because there are much better places to have an affair, you know," says Sharon, now in possession of the iPad.
"Shut up, will you? I have to go talk to him," she says, gathering up Sulamith and her purse.
"I'm still hung up on the fact that you're sleeping with Lindsey again," says Lori, putting on her coat.
"We're not talking about this," says Stevie firmly, holding her hand up.
"Just go," says Karen, obviously frustrated. "Your car is waiting. I'll deal with Liz tonight. She'll figure out what to do."
Stevie nods blankly, already heading for the door. How did they get caught this quickly? They pass Lindsey's dressing room, and it's already empty.
