Lush (14 page)
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did. And I never really stopped.”
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“I like that story. When I was growing up—Oh my god, what
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is that?”
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“Abalone.”
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“Wow. Love it.” He fi nished chewing and went in for a few
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more bites. She loved to watch people eat. Especially Damien.
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He had started off wary but had taken up the challenge.
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He sipped his wine. “This is also awesome. Anyway, we
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rarely went out to dinner when I was growing up. We didn’t
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often have much extra money. My mom’s a great cook, but we’re
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a meat- and- potatoes family. I never really went to fancy places, 28S
not until we hit it big and label people started to take us to
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lunch.”
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“I love meat and potatoes. My favorite meal of my mom’s is
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meatloaf. Also, small hole-in- the- wall places can really be great 02
fi nds. Some of the best food I’ve ever eaten has been from some
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three- table place in a strip mall.”
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Another course arrived and she had to clasp her hands on
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her lap to keep from rubbing them together with glee.
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“You’re really happy right now, aren’t you?”
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“I am. This is . . . it’s special. I’m blown away. Taste this.”
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She held her fork out and he leaned in to take a bite. “I hope
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you’re not weirded out that I like to share.” She really did hope
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not, because she wanted to grab some of what was on his plate.
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“Hell no. I like it.” He indicated his plate and she hoped she
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didn’t look like a hungry animal when she forked up some of
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his food.
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It was hours later when they walked outside. He hailed a cab
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and she leaned into his side, despite the August heat.
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“It’s a beautiful thing to watch you around food.”
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She tipped her head back. “Yeah?”
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He nodded. “Oh yeah. You enjoy it like nothing I’ve ever seen.
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You get this light in your eyes. Pure joy. Sensual. Really, really
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hot. Thanks for sharing this with me.”
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“Thank you for coming with me. And for not complaining
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when I ate off your plate.”
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He kissed the top of her head. “Anytime.”
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Two women approached. “Oh my god, you’re Damien Hur-
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ley!” They giggled and he smiled at them.
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“I am. How are you two ladies this fi ne evening?”
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“You’re so hot. Would you sign an autograph?” She started
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digging in her purse, unsteady on her feet.
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“So are you staying in town? We have tickets to see you
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tomorrow night. Can we come backstage? We’d totally make it
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worth your while, if you know what I mean.”
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He chuckled.
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They ignored Mary totally. One of them even sort of edged
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in front of her. She stepped back, shocked at the behavior.
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He looked back to her. “Hey, don’t go anywhere.”
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Damien saw the look on her face, knew she was pissed. He
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felt bad— it had been a pretty fucking stellar night up until that 10
point.
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A cab rolled up and the doorman opened the door. She shot
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him a look over her shoulder and got in. “Looks like you’re busy.
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I can go back on my own if you’d like.”
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“Gotta run. Have a good night, ladies, and enjoy the show.”
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He hurried, disentangling himself from their grabbing hands
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and slid into the cab.
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Mary stared straight ahead as they pulled away from the curb.
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“I’m sorry about that.”
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“Yeah, I could tell.” There was enough ice in her voice to
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make him shiver.
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“Look, it happens. What am I supposed to do? Be rude?”
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“Um, in case it’s escaped your notice, you
were
rude. To me.
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I don’t give one tiny drop of fuck about two drunken skanks
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offering you a three- way for a backstage pass. You gotta do
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what you gotta do, but don’t cry to me about being rude when
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you were to me.”
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The cabbie met his eyes in the rearview for a moment, shar-
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ing one of those sympathetic guy glances.
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Damien had considered her pretty easygoing, but Mary
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Whaley had a temper on her. He should have guessed given the
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way she was in bed, but wow, she was pissed and he was prob-
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ably going to hell because it made him hot for her to see it.
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He took a deep breath. “You’re right. It happens so often I
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guess I just sort of get immune to how it affects everyone around
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me. Don’t let this ruin what has been one of the best nights of
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the entire year. Please?”
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He took her hand and she gave him one slowly raised brow.
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“How do you do that? I can manage a single brow raise, but
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the slow draw up, I can’t do it.” He managed to give her his
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most charming smile.
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“It
was
a lovely evening. Until that. Look, I get it. We aren’t 13
married or anything, but we were on a date. I don’t own you. I
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just expect to not have some fl oozy push me out of the way while
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she offers up her sexual services.”
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He nodded. “You’re totally right. Can I tell you that the over-
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whelming majority of my fans are awesome and respectful? And
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I was raised right, I’ll have you know. We’re on a date and you
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deserve respect.”
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“Hm.”
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He knew she’d forgiven him, thank goodness. But the way
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she’d so casually tossed out that they were just on a date and
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nothing more rattled around at the back of his mind. She was
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so much more than just some woman he had fun with.
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“How about we go up on the roof and look at the stars?
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There’s a pretty garden and places to lounge around.”
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She fi nally smiled. “All right then.”
S28
N29
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• • •
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On the roof it was quieter, but the sounds of the city still rose to 04
greet them. The air was warm, the sky was clear and even the
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lights from all around them couldn’t totally kill the stars high
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above.
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He got them both drinks and steered her to a padded chaise
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he’d sighted as they got outside. It was in a quiet little corner so 09
he could have her all to himself.
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She sat, taking her shoes off and tucking her legs up under
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her body.
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“What is this again?” he asked her. She’d been the one to tell
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him what to order back at the bar.
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“They call it the Skyline. When I make them I just call them
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ginger lime fi zzes. It’s fi zzy water with ginger and lime juice. I 16
steep my ginger in the fi zzy water in a little muslin bag. Don’t
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know how they do it here. But it’s quite tasty.”
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He clinked his glass to hers and they settled back.
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“I’m so full. Like to- the- brim, I-need-to-unbutton-my- jeans-
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and- take-a-nap full.”
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He laughed. “Exactly. Or as my dad calls it, Thanksgiving
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full.” He put an arm around her shoulders and she leaned in to
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his body.
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“Are you ready for tomorrow’s show?”
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“I am. This is a special venue for us. We played here the fi rst
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time our CD hit Billboard at number one. The crowds are always
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good to us, always rambunctious and noisy. It feeds your
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energy.”
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“Is it as amazing as it seems to have them sing the words to
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the song? I go to see Pearl Jam at least twice every tour and from
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the audience perspective, it gives me chills to be singing along
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and have Ed get quiet and let the crowd fi nish the words.”
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“I don’t even know if I could do justice to what it’s like.
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You’re fl attered that they like you enough to pay to come to a
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show. They gotta deal with traffi c and parking and then every-
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thing costs so much. But they come. They spend their hard-
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earned money and time and they come to the show. And then
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they sing along. It’s . . . I don’t even know. Astonishing. Hum-
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bling. Our fans kick ass. They’ve been so loyal from day one.
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We meet our fan club folks in every city when we roll through
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and love ’em.”
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He liked that her questions showed how much she really
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thought about things. She was insightful as well as beautiful.
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“It’s a slog sometimes. The road I mean. You’re in a different
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hotel every night, or the bus. And the toilet is always breaking
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down and you don’t have much privacy. You get sick of every-
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one. The food is utter shit most of the time. So you roll into the
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next town and you set up and then you walk out on that stage
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and it all comes back to me. When I sit behind my kit and I look
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out over that audience and they’re cheering and they’ve made
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signs and they throw stuff on stage and yell out their favorites
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and yeah, sing along and it’s the most powerful reminder of just
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how lucky I am. The exhaustion fades and the joy of making
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music with my brothers comes back and I remember I’m so for-
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tunate to have this life.”
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“That’s lovely. I’m so glad you have that. I can’t imagine the
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pressure you must be under sometimes. I know some of it through
S28
Gillian about Adrian and this chance he took making this double
N29
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album and all that. But it’s got to be so much more than what
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she can tell me. I admire that you do what you do.”
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“Thank you. Thank you for coming out here. And for dinner
04
and for being you. I’m really glad to be here with you right now.”
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In fact, he couldn’t think of a single place he’d rather be than
06
right there with her at his side as they stared up at the stars.
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He was, indeed, a really lucky man.
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he had her special access badge on and stood just left of
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the stage, watching Damien play drums. The crowd
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screamed so loud she wasn’t sure how Adrian avoided
19
losing his hearing.
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Sweet Hollow Ranch was up fi rst, opening for Adrian. They
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were pretty damned successful in their own right, so she knew
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this mini tour was more because they all liked each other and
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had fun playing together.