The Rock Star Next Door, a Modern Fairytale (17 page)

“I’ll think ab
out i
t.” Jessie promised. “Just give me
time. It’s not like I’m
surrounded by suitors
.” His look of disbelief challenge
d her words. “Really, since
Kevin
there hasn’t been anyone in my life in the past two years. Of course, Jack’s Mafia act might
have something to do with that.
”

“I can’t believe you aren’t being romanced by every g
uy in this town.”

“Mayb
e they know something you don’t.
”
She grinned at him.

The ebony brow rose doubtfully.

“You’re hearing it first from me, okay. Try not to tell Ruby Star
.
” She teased.

Lex nodded, looking away as guilt washed over his features.

“I
don’t put out right away, that’s why I don’
t get asked out
more than once. I know it’s old fashioned. But sometimes I feel
like I’m still stuck in high school, because
the
men
I’ve dated here
only want one thing, just like
back
in high school.
I’ve
been intimate with one guy in my life,
that’s it. One I’d
very much
like to forget, if you know what I mean. Still think I’m the girl for you?” She chided
, giving him a severe look.

“How old were you?” His interest grew and her hopes of dissuading him faded. He wasn't going to be so easily put off. 

“Si
xteen. I had a big crush on Jim
and he said all the right things, you know, like you guys have a way of doing when you want something.”

Lex took her hand. He started kneading it, stroking, caressing, as if he could sense the ache in her heart.

She l
ooked at him for a moment and
quickly looked away
from those penetrating baby blues
. “I was a vir
gin, believing the guy loved me
and then I hear him bragging to his friend the next morning--” Her voice caught in her throat. She thought she could tell him, but it wasn’t so easy to tell another guy how she’d been tricked.

“We’ve all done those kinds of things to at least one girl
back in the day.
Jess, I’m thirty-two. I’m not feeling the pressure of raging hormones, looking to get laid
by anybody so I can put another mark on my belt
. Most guys grow out of that phase.”

“Not
as many as you
think. It’s worse here than back in Wisconsin.
”

“And so
,
you were telling
me what happened the next morning.
” Lex picked up the story where she’d left off.

“The next morning, Jim got up to answer the door. His friend came in. While I was in the bathroom, he told the guy he’d got me last night, you know, bragging, cuz I was a virgin, the
pompous ass. So, the friend starts in about
how he’s all concerned about Jim, isn’t he pushing it a bit, after all,
I’m the
fifth girl
he’s banged that week
.
  I was so humiliated, devastated to learn I’d given up a very special part of myself to a guy I’d idolized since seventh grade. I’m standing there naked in that bathroom, wondering how I’m going to walk out and face the pair of jackasses after o
verhearing that
.”

“What about
Kevin?
Jack said something about Steve breaking his arm?”

Jessie turned to Lex, taken aback that he knew about the stunt
man. He wasn’t going to give up. S
he had to give him
that. “Jack told you about him
?”
Kevin
wasn’t a teenage boy wi
th overactive hormones.
It was a sordid tale, one she didn’t want to repeat.

“He hurt you
.”

Jessie closed her eyes
and let her
fore
head
rest against her upra
ised knees. “He d
idn’t get the chanc
e. Are you psychic or something?
”

“Or something.” Lex returned. “You were going to
tell me about Kevin
.”

“Was I
?” Jessie sat up. “Okay,
here it is;
h
e took me out a couple of times
but
I never knew
he was i
n
to bondage
. He didn’t tell me
that up front.
He talked me into coming over to his house
one night after dinner
and the next thing I know, he
’s lured me into his basement for a drink at his
‘
bar
’
--or
his dungeon pub
as he liked to call it.”  She
sucked in her breath and
swallo
wed the bitterness
in her th
roat
.

“He forced hi
mself
on
you.” Lex concluded
, his voic
e raising an octave
.

“It didn’t get
that far.” Jessie squeezed the words out of her tight throat with difficulty as she kept her gaze fixed on the far horizon. “I managed to keep my head, made an excuse about needing to use the bathroom. I locked the door and cal
led the guys from my cell
. I told them
the address and
what was going down and they came right over
while I waited behind the
bathroom door.”

Jessie sat up straight and
gazed out at the sea, unable to m
eet his eyes
. “When the guys arrived
they
didn’t knock. For all they knew
I was being rap
ed. They broke in
and found
Kevin
dressed in this weird
bondage
getup
, mask and all
. Jac
k and Steve took care of Kevin while Darrell coaxed me out of the bathroom.
”

“Did you report it?” He
asked with agitation.

“
No.
He kept screaming that
no
one would believe me if I went to the cops, that I came there willingly, knowing full well what was going to happen. I didn’t
know
, but at that point I was just grateful I mana
ged to escape the nut job
.”

She shoved her fists
into her sweatshirt pocket.
Maybe now he’d rethink his misconception that they were soul mates. She had a lot of e
m
otional baggage, she knew. I
t was
why she didn’t get involved with men.

“Jessie.” He whisper
ed. “Yo
u didn’t believe him?
He was a p
redator. A man in that lifestyle
doesn’t lure innocent young women into his basement
and then pounce on them
. He tells them up front what he’s looking for, giving them a chance to decline.
”

“I did
n’t report it because I felt
stupid for getting involved with him in the first place, like I somehow sh
ould have known he was into BDSM
.
Now you know why Jack and the guys are
so overly protective.
Dumb, gullible Jessie.
There, happy
?
”

She pulled the hood of her red sweatshirt up about her head
as she struggled to remain aloof about the whole affair.
Still, just talking about the incident, even after two years, had her blood pumping and her heart hammering with fury.

Lex s
at forward, the better to peer past her token shield of a B
ucky Badger hoodie.
“
You were very lucky, sweethear
t.
”

“
It
was
two years ago. Kyra’s
been doing her best
trying to fix me
up with blind dates, but I
feel awkward and
uncomfortable with most of the guys she throws my way. I feel like I’m supposed to live up to some stage image that’s not real.
” 

“I get that.” He sighed, “I’m right there with you.”

Jessie had to do something to shake
off the melancholy that had settled over her
.
She dealt with the Kevin incident, mostly by not thinking a
bout it because when she did
she
got really angry or really sad. She shifted slightly, preparing to slide
off the rock and make it back to the safety of
the beach house
so she didn’t have to look into Lex’s baby blues.

“Don’t go.” His hand circled her wrist
. “
Please.
We need to settle this.”

“No, don’t
tell me you still
think you
want to marry me.
”

His fingers caressed her cheek as he gazed longingly down at her. “There was never any doubt.”

“
Well, there’s plenty of doubt here.”
Je
ssie returned. “
I don’t have any psychic link or voices in my head telling me ‘he’s the one’.”

“I understand.” He said with that annoyingly patronizing patienc
e. “I understand, Jessie.  But
I’m not going anywhere.”

“So what’s the deal?” Kyra asked later that evening as the five band members sat c
omfortably in the
living room of the
ir shared
beach house.

“You sounded upset
on the phone, Jess.” J
ack breathed, releasing a stream
of smoke into the room. He sat close to Jessi
e, straddling the plush ottoman
between the matching love seats. “Trouble in paradise?”

“I
have something important to share with you guys.
I need your help, but first . . .” She looked
to Steve. He gave her a blank expression
as if he hadn’t the slightest id
ea of what she was hinting at
, despite the w
ell-rehearsed speech Jessie helped him prepare for coming out to the rest of the band
.
He shrugged, and then shook his head at her. He wasn’t ready.

“Sit down,
Jess.” Darrell patted the
sofa between Kyra and him
self
, concern this time, not lust, imploring her from ac
r
oss the room. “You look
wigged out
over something
.
”

She grimaced
, clasped her
moist palms together
and sank down on the sofa next to Steve
, opposite Darrell and Kyra
. “Lex asked me to marry him this morning.”

“
S
oooo
. . . what
’s the problem?” Jack scoffed.

“Jess
ie. That’s wonderful.
” Kyra rose from the sofa and moved across the expanse  and started
huggin
g her.

“
I haven’t said yes
.
” Jessie informed them
as
Kyra pulled away from her and re
turned to her seat
opposite them.  “I can’t marry him--it wouldn’t work.”

“Why?” The group asked as one, each one regarding her with surprise.

“You love him, don’t you?” Jack asked. “You said s
o, the other day.”

“That was bef
ore he left her.” Steve said
.

“
What
?
” Darrell
interjected. “
Nobody tells me anything.
When did this happen?”

“You’re kidding.
” Jack blustered, turning to
Kyra
, “She’s ki
dding, isn’t she?”

It was Kyra who remained unperturbe
d. “She’s not kidding.
” She said
, looking down at he
r own engagement ring and twisting it on her finger
. “They had a litt
le
misunderstanding.
They broke up.
” She looked r
epentantly at Jessie
.