The Rockstar's Intern

Chapter Eighteen - Mannequin

After I half-shoved every groupie onto the most hideous white van I could order, I skipped up the steps to the tour bus, delighted with the turnaround the small army of housekeepers had made. The pillows were fluffed and the beds were made like a wild rock group had never lived here. The aroma of fresh pine sol lingered in the air and I breathed it in, pretending like I was back in the kitchen of my apartment in Nashville. Instead of standing here in my pajamas at noon, with my hair a mess, and my personal life an even bigger mess.

"Got my results Barbie!" Snake yelled triumphantly, flashing his lit up screen at me. "Healthy as a horse." He taunted, and I grabbed the phone, scrolling through the report, disbelieving, but sure enough, he received a clean bill of health, cocaine be damned.

"You sir, are superhuman." I laughed and he gave me a wink as I passed.

"Superhuman in more ways than one Barbie!" He shouted and I shook my head on my way to the shower.

"Chlamydia?!" Theo's voice screeched from beyond the walls of his bedroom as I reached the bathroom. I chuckled into the hot water, but scrubbed at the sensitive skin on my breasts, trying desperately to scrub off the feeling of Asher's mouth on me.

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After curling my hair and applying my makeup in the small bathroom, I felt much more like myself. I slid my old modest cotton panties up my thighs and my beige bra beneath my pale pink dress. The dress was the last one to have made it from home. I needed to get control of my life, and parading around in things Asher Adams had bought me, certainly didn't help.

I was relieved to find the tour bus empty with each band member tucked away in their various rooms and my bunk unoccupied. I wasn't tired, and I certainly didn't want to call Kent after this morning, so I grabbed my small orange leather notebook and pen.

I climbed down the steps of the bus in front of the music venue, enjoying watching the roadies unpack all of the equipment from the shelves below the bus, only to put it back in at the end of the night. I ran my finger along Asher's rose gold guitar wondering if it would stay at the venue overnight. The Seattle gig was spread over two nights and three days with a day to relax and unwind after the second show, before we ventured off to the next city and started all over again.

The side door to the music venue sat propped open and I slipped through it without anyone giving me a second glance. My modest pale pink dress was working its magic.

The venue was a little grungy, but expansive with two tiers and a stage that was twice the size as the one in San Francisco. I sat in one of the seats in the back that seemed clean enough, and cracked open the orange leather notebook. The new binding groaned a little as it split open for me.

I hesitated for several moments, my pen in my mouth glancing around at my surroundings, but none of the roadies seemed to be paying me any mind.

You surprised me, sent a shock wave right through me, between your blonde hair and your tattoos I knew you were too good to be true.

I glanced down, knowing what I was writing was true, but I felt my cheeks flush, writing so openly about Asher. I put my pen back in my mouth for a moment before continuing.

The way your hand felt on my face that morning in the middle of June. It felt like you could feel me, really feel me when I couldn't even feel myself.

I dropped the pen as Asher's voice broke through the quiet. "Hey man, be careful with that! I didn't bring a back up." He chastised a young roadie who dropped his guitar case to the floor with a heavy thud. Despite his frustration, he looked positively ethereal from this angle. So high up with a million tiny stage lights making him glow. I now understood the need for girls in the audience to swoon and fall all over themselves every time he opened his beautiful mouth. He pushed a hand into his hair and over his eyes, glancing out past the stage lights and I quickly stood, gathering my belongings. Asher didn't deserve the satisfaction of knowing I had been standing here marveling over him...

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"It looks beyond great on you." The sales associate with the turquoise hair and eyebrow piercing insisted, studying me in the full length mirror.

"I don't know. It's not really me." I argued, turning to the side. After writing about Asher I had taken a walk to clear my mind, but somehow wandered into a second hand boutique where the dress in the window had caught my eye.

"Well it should be you." The girl snorted.

My reflection looked much more Asher's speed, the tight knit black dress clung to my curves, jutting into a low V at my full bust, and ended high on my fishnet covered thighs. I felt sexy, but I also felt exposed.

"Seriously, if you don't buy that, the store is just going to give it to you." The girl raised her heavily pierced eyebrow, challenging me.

"Fine. Fine. I'll take it." I rolled my eyes, snapping the tag off the back and handed it to her.

When I got back to the tour bus the band was already gone for their sound check, so I took a few moments to send emails, and organize events for us to do while in Seattle, not that any of the guys would care to do anything but party and sleep with various random women. Still, my mind fantasized about going to dinner with Asher, and exploring Seattle with Asher, and Kent calling me.

Shit. I stared at the buzzing phone, seriously considering rejecting the call.

"Hey babe." Kent's smooth voice filled the line.

"Hey." I said, praying he couldn't hear the betrayal in my voice. My guilty nipple hardened in agreement.

"So I've been thinking. You'll be in Phoenix next week, right?"

"Uh huh." I murmured, turning to examine my hips in the dress again.

"Well I have a meeting there the week before, so what if I stuck around for a few days and took you out for dinner?" He asked, his voice hopeful but distracted like it usually was.

"Okay. Yeah. I could do that." I sighed.

"Gee, don't sound so excited about it Samantha." He laughed, my dismissiveness finally garnering his full attention.

"No, no. Of course I would love to see you Kent." I atoned. "I'm just heading out the door to catch up with the band at their sound check. You know, they're up to their usual diva antics..." He laughed loudly, eating up my lie.

"Don't let them ride you too hard, Sam." He said and my eyes bugged in the mirror.

"I can't make any promises. Talk to you soon Kent." I lied again, tossing the phone into my bunk.