A Time to Move On (11 page)

“I’m sorry,” Luke said. “I had no
idea that you really felt like that. That you felt so alone, man.”

“I was never alone though. I had
you guys.”

“The band made it, so it didn’t
matter?” Luke asked.

Mack shook his head. “No. The truth
is that the band was a distraction. But one I loved. One I still love," Mack
flickered a smile but it faded quick. “What I meant was that when I met
her
,
it seemed to all go away. She made me forget those things.”

“Kelly.”

“Yeah. But that was taken from me.
Because of this shit.” Mack held the beer bottle out and then slammed it on the
table. Foam shot out of the bottle.

“I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah, me too,” Mack said. “But
something’s happening right now, Luke. There’s a good reason why I don’t want
to touch those songs right now.”

“What is it?”

“This woman,” Mack said. “I don’t
know how it looks to you guys… but it’s important to me. I can’t get her out of
my mind. I find myself wanting to know everything about her."

Luke nodded. “Then go find out,
Mack. Sitting here, drinking won’t get you anywhere.”

“It’s not that easy to let go,”
Mack said.

“Nobody said to let go. Just move ahead.
There’s a difference.”

Luke stared at Mack. He never
thought he’d hear Mack talk about another woman. Everything was about to
change, and Luke wasn't sure if now, right before a mega tour, was the best
time for Mack to open his heart again.

(11)

It was impossible to still taste
Mack on her lips, but each time Laura licked her lips, she tasted him. His
lips, his tongue, the sweet taste of whiskey. It was all there. Laura must have
looked foolish walking around all day licking her lips. She didn't care though.
What she really wanted was the kiss to come back to her again. To have Mack
back. Whether it was the whiskey talking or maybe a vulnerable side he didn’t
show quite often, he had said he wanted Laura for one night. As tempting as it was,
there was a problem with that.

Laura would want more. She knew
that already. She knew that because of the way he made her feel. The darkness in
his eyes made Laura long for him. Yet she had his number and was doing nothing
with it.

As Laura sat on her couch for
another night of flicking through the channels, she held her cell in her hand,
staring at the dark screen. She could see her reflection in it. She still
looked like the Laura from before; the Laura from  a time when she lived
somewhere else and was with someone else.

For the first few months of her
pregnancy, she and Jon had managed to make living together bearable. But when
she started to show and wanted more
attention
, Jon couldn’t, and didn't,
want to give it to her. He wouldn't even hold her anymore.

She had convinced herself that when
their baby girl came into the world everything would suddenly get better. That
a baby would bond them forever. Instead, it pushed them further apart. Jon
didn’t want Laura. All he cared about was being a father to Ella. Which is what
made him moving on so quickly even harder to accept.

Laura pressed a button on her phone.
She could call Mack real quick. See what he was doing. It was no big deal,
right? She could just pick up her phone and call one of the most popular
drummers in the world...

Laura closed her eyes and shook her
head.

Mack was a troubled rockstar. He drank.
He partied. He lived a much different life than Laura, and he didn’t need some
unemployed woman clinging to him.

When her phone vibrated, she gasped
and dropped it. The sudden buzzing scared her. She laughed at herself as she
picked it back up and looked at the screen.

She had a text message...

F
rom Mack.

Laura swiped across the screen and
one word popped up.

Talk?

Laura licked her lips. She tasted
the whiskey from days ago. Sure, it was only in her mind, but she didn't care.

Every inch of her was nervous as
she typed back.

Yes.
Please.

Her phone rang a second later.

“Hello?” she answered, like she
didn't believe it was really Mack calling.

“Hey,” Mack’s voice said.

A warmth ran through Laura’s body.
It flooded places that made her toes curl and her cheeks turn red. Even the way
he spoke was sexy.

“Hey,” Laura said.

“Am I bothering you?”

“Trust me, not at all.”

“What are you doing?”

“Sitting on my couch. Staring at my
phone. Debating about calling you.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Mack, you’re this famous person,
and I’m... well, I'm not. You don’t…”

“Is this where you tell me what I
need and don’t need?” Mack asked. “If so, I’ll just hang up.”

“Sorry,” Laura whispered.

“I’ve had a long freaking day,
Laura,” Mack said.

“Oh? Is everything okay?”

“It's fine. Had to do two radio
shows. Spent most of the day driving. I’m beat. I should be crashing on my
couch right now and going to sleep. I should be drinking another beer, and
another, and another… but I’m not. Instead, I’m on the phone with you.”

“Why? You don’t even know me,
Mack."

“I want to,” Mack said, with a hint
of uncertainty.

Laura’s throat tightened. A man was
actually intrigued by her. A man was actually talking
to
her. Not
at
her. But why did he seem unsure about his decision to call?

“What do you want to know?” Laura
asked.

“Not on the phone,” Mack said. “I
hate talking on the phone.”

“So what do you want to do?”

“I’m going to come get you. But I
don't want any bullshit tonight, Laura. Sorry. I don’t want to hear about what
I do or who everyone thinks I am.”

“Okay, sure,” Laura said. “Where
are we going?”

Mack laughed. “I’m going to show
you what it's like to be me.”

“So I can’t talk about you being a
rockstar, but you’re going to show me what it’s like?”

“Exactly. Confused?”

“Actually, I’m not. Not when it
comes to you…”

Laura bit her lip. She wondered if her
comment had crossed the line. The call ended and Laura darted for the bathroom
to check out her reflection.

Are you really going to do this?
What
if you’re
not
good enough?

Laura took a deep breath and
decided that she had nothing to lose, so she left her apartment and waited
outside. When she heard the distant rumbling of a motorcycle, she stood up. Her
heart raced and when Mack rode into the parking lot of her apartment building,
she shook her head in amazement.

Mack pulled up next to Laura, the
motorcycle still running. He took his helmet off and handed it to Laura. She
put it on and smiled at him. He gave a quick nod.

Laura climbed on the back and
wrapped her hands around his body. Mack pulled out of the parking lot and
turned left. And with that, their night began. Riding on a motorcycle was a
little different at night. Everything was a black blur, so all Laura could do
was hold on tight and let him take her anywhere he wanted.

After about a half hour, Mack
turned into a parking lot of a dark building. The headlight of the motorcycle
climbed up the building and moved as Mack turned. When he stopped, he pushed
the kickstand down and turned the motorcycle off.

Laura didn't move at first.

Mack reached back and patted her
knee.

She blushed and climbed off. She
removed the helmet and placed it on the seat.  Mack turned around to face her.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey,” Laura whispered.

Mack put his hands to Laura’s
sides. He pulled and lifted her onto her toes. Their mouths touched, but they
didn’t kiss. Their noses pressed together, their eyes burned in the darkness.

Laura could taste Mack’s warm
breath.

“Shit,” he whispered.

“What?” Laura asked.

“You don’t get what happens when
I’m this close to you.”

“I think I can take a guess…”

“Not just
that
,” Mack said.

“Then what?”

Mack didn’t respond. He kissed
Laura instead. The kiss was hotter than their first one. Mack was aggressive
yet gentle at the same time. His right hand slipped around to Laura’s back and
his left hand crept up her right side. He came so very close to touching her
chest that Laura let out a moan. Mack groaned and kissed at Laura harder.

Slowly, Laura turned and found
herself leaning against the motorcycle. Mack was right against her, kissing her
over and over. Laura put her hands to his shirt and found the bottom of it. Before
she could stop herself, her hands moved under his shirt and found warm skin.
Warm,
hard
skin.

When Mack pulled back, Laura shook
her head. She wasn’t done yet. Hell, they hadn’t even actually started yet.

“Mack…”

“Come inside with me,” Mack said.

“What’s wrong with out here?” Laura
asked.

“Dark parking lot?”

“I don’t care…”

Mack came forward and kissed Laura
again. Then he backed up. He took Laura’s hands out from his shirt.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

Laura was too caught up in the
intense feeling of desire between her legs to ask any questions, so she allowed
Mack to guide her into the building.

“What is this place?”

Mack ignored the question and held
the door open for Laura. The inside was almost completely dark except for the
emergency exit signs. The small red lights provided no light to the ground
though.

“Follow me,” Mack said, still
holding Laura's hand.

“Mack… I can’t see…”

“That’s okay. Nothing wrong with
darkness, is there?”

Laura was learning that those
questions were Mack's way of trying to let her in slowly. The mystery only
attracted her more.

When Mack stopped walking, he
grabbed Laura's waist. He lifted her and then sat her down. She let out a crying
gasp and grabbed at Mack’s arms.

“Hey,” he said. “Trust me. Okay?”

“I do.”

A second later, there was the click
of a switch and a light came on above them. Laura looked around and couldn’t
believe her eyes. She was sitting on the edge of a stage. All around her were
instruments and amplifiers and behind her was a big drum set. There was a Fallen
Tuesday banner hung behind the drums. In front of Laura were a few rows of
metal folding chairs. And then Mack stood there, arms crossed, a half smile on
his face.

“What is this?” Laura asked.

“Where we practice for the tour,”
Mack said. “Where we come to practice new songs. It’s our little jam garage.”

“Doesn’t look like a garage to me,”
Laura said and laughed.

“Yeah, it’s a little bigger than
what we started with. But it comes with the success.”

“This is really cool,” Laura said.

“Yeah, it is.” Mack leaned against
the stage, one hand on each side of Laura’s body. “So tell me what you were
doing on the side of that road, Laura. It’s driving me mad.”

“What were you doing…”

“No. I wanted a night to ask you
questions. That’s why I came to get you.”

Laura swallowed hard. She stared at
Mack and it occurred to her then that she had somehow gotten to him. That he
was telling the truth when he said he couldn’t stop thinking of her. She
smiled.

“I ran out of gas after quitting my
job,” Laura said.

“Why did you quit your job?”

“I didn’t want to do it anymore.”

“But why?”

“Because I didn’t want to get stuck
there.”

“Was it a good job?”

“A great job. Real estate. I’m good
with numbers and sales and all that stuff. Believe it or not.”

“I believe anything you say,” Mack
said.

Laura felt her cheeks burning red.
“Thanks. I guess.”

“There’s more behind your eyes,
Laura. I can see it. That’s what I can’t stop thinking about.”

“Then why would I share it? If I
tell you, I’m not interesting anymore.”

Mack smiled. “That’s bullshit,
sweetheart. You’re interesting now and you’ll be interesting after you tell me.
Laura, I’m hurting from something, too. I lost someone on that road. That’s why
I was there. When I’m with you, the pain doesn't feel as heavy. That's never
happened before.”

Laura reached out and touched
Mack’s face. Her fingers scratched along his facial hair. She held his face. He
was so attractive.

“I’ve never been on the path to
normal,” Laura said. “My sister was straight as an arrow and I was like a leaf
blowing in the wind. I never settled, because I was afraid to. When I did let
my guard down, and tried to settle, I lost the most important person in my
life, forever. I… I lost someone too, Mack.”

“That’s why this works,” Mack said.

“This? We have a
this
?”

“I don’t know what the hell we
have, Laura. But I’m staring at you… right now… and it’s all okay for me.
Everything else fades away.”

“Mack, are you…” Laura licked her
lips. “Are you sure about this?”

“This is the first thing I've been
sure about in years,” Mack said.

Laura nibbled on her lip. “I don't
want to lie to you, Mack. I’m not the free living kind of person that I appear
to be. I’m… I’m in pain, like I told you the day I met you. Settling down feels
like I'm forgetting the past, so I don't settle. Does that make sense?”

“You have no idea how much sense
that makes to me,” Mack said. “I’ve never known anything other than Fallen
Tuesday. Music is all I have, which is why I don't indulge in the typical
musician lifestyle. I can't risk losing it, or else I will lose my
identity."

Laura put her other hand to Mack’s
face. She started to lean toward him.

If you do this… you’re going to
fall
hard
… he’s a
rock star
… this is not what you should
be doing…

But for Laura, it was exactly what
she should be doing, because the best part of being a leaf blowing in the wind
was that you never knew when the wind would kick up and take you somewhere
you've never been before.

*

Mack stared into Laura’s eyes. He
didn’t just want to kiss her anymore. He wanted to feel her. She had
experienced loss like he had. The details he didn’t know, and while he wanted
to ask more, he was lost for words at the moment. Looking at Laura made
everything feel like it would be okay. That the continuation of time had a
purpose.

Laura asked, “So what now?”

“Now? Right now I’m going to kiss
you again, Laura. But this time when it happens, if you don’t stop me I won't
stop…”

Laura kissed Mack hard and fast. He
groaned and slid his hands to Laura’s lower back and pulled. He thrust at her,
making sure she felt him.
All of him.

The kiss broke for a second and
Laura ran her thumb along Mack’s bottom lip.

“Don’t stop,” Laura said, looking
into his eyes. “No matter what, Mack, don’t fucking stop.”

Hearing Laura curse made Mack throb
even harder. He kissed Laura again and this time, there was no stopping it.

Mack’s hands were fast. He reached
for Laura’s pants and with the flick of his thumb, they came undone. One of his
hands went up her shirt until he moved over her breast. He squeezed gently and
Laura sighed in his mouth.