[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
“Have I said ‘thank you’ yet?” Kevin asked, pulling me into a tight hug.

“Only a few hundred times.” I giggled, my voice muffled by the fabric of his shirt.

“Well, I have to say it again then.” Kevin said, not making any move to lessen his grip. “It was wonderfully written. Kristin thinks so too. She was amazed at how well you were able to portray our on-the-road relationship. So many of the fans seem to regard our wives in a negative way, and I know that this one blog post won’t really change anything, but I just needed to thank you for saying what every single one of us has been trying to say for years.”

“It wasn’t all me.” I said, feeling myself begin to blush. “Kristin had a lot of input. All of your wives did.”

I had just posted my eight week blog post detailing the different relationships between the guys and their wives. I had attempted to make it both heartfelt and truthful. I hadn’t shied away from the fact that several of their wives felt uneasy around the fans and that a couple of them were inherently jealous of the fact that hundreds of women tempted their men on a daily basis. With the guys’ permission, I had talked about the realistic risk of being unfaithful, about the struggle of being alone for so long, and about the various ways that they coped with being away from their families. It hadn’t been any easy post to write. In the beginning, I hadn’t even wanted to write it for fear that it would be too personal. It was Lauren who had eventually convinced me that this was an aspect of the tour that needed to be shared.

“Rochelle and I loved it!” AJ cried, pulling me away from Kevin and wrapping his own arms around me. “I think you should seriously consider becoming a professional writer. The emotion that you conveyed was dead on.” He added, planting a wet, friendly kiss on my cheek.

“Thanks.” I managed, giggling slightly as his beard tickled my face.

“I see the post is up!” Nick cried, as he and Howie burst into the dressing room.

“Amazing job!” Howie exclaimed, grabbing me by the shoulders and kissing me softly on both cheeks. “I’m just in the middle of telling Leigh to check it out.” He added, waving his phone in the air for emphasis.

“Amazing? Hardly!” Leighanne stated, strolling into the room with Lauren at her heels. “I can’t believe that Brian and I are hardly even mentioned. I’m on the road with him ALL the time! What happened to all of the great stuff that I told you to post about our relationship? Why did none of that make the article? You went on for a full paragraph about Rochelle and her stupid feelings of insecurity.”

“Hello? I’m kinda in the room here ...” AJ pointed out. “That’s my WIFE you’re talking about.”

“So, what happened? Why didn’t you quote me?” Leighanne demanded, ignoring AJ’s cry of contempt.

“Well ...” I trailed off, struggling to come up with an excuse.

The truth was that I had hardly believed a word of what Leighanne had said during our conversation. She had painted a rosy picture of her marriage; insinuating that she and Brian never even had a minor disagreement. She had made grand claims about how she would never even think of looking at another man. She had also contended that Brian had never been tempted by a fan, because the fans respected their marriage. In an embarrassing twist, she had even gone on and on about their amazing sex life. The whole conversation had felt forced, as if she was trying to not only convince me, but herself as well.

In the end, I just couldn’t bring myself to quote what she had said. Especially, because I knew that at least half of it was a lie. I had seen fans at VIP events practically throw themselves at Brian. I knew what they whispered to him as they posed for their pictures. I saw how their hands wandered all over him when they thought no one else was watching.

I also saw how Brian responded to their actions. Nine times out of ten, he was gracious and tactfully ignored their advances. But there were times when, just like the other guys, he stared hungrily at a girl in a low-cut shirt, when his hands roamed at the edge of a short skirt, when a hug lingered for just a few seconds too long.

The difference was that everyone else’s significant other had been brave enough to acknowledge that their husbands were tempted by other women and to explain that they were occasionally tempted by other men. Brian, himself, had admitted that he sometimes found it hard to turn away from an attractive woman. Leighanne, on the other hand, had denied everything. I had felt that it was unfair to the other guys and their wives to print her lies. So, I hadn’t. Instead, I had talked about the role that Baylee played in their relationship and on the tour.

“Well?” Leighanne demanded.

“I didn’t want to write about something that I know isn’t true.” I said, my eyes locking with hers.

The two of us stared at each other in derision; neither one of us wanting to be the first to look away. I could see her right eye twitching furiously beneath her make-up, and I knew that was her tell. She was beyond angry.

“Shiiiiiit” Nick whistled, breaking the heavy silence that had filled the room.

“You don’t know anything about my marriage. Everything that I told you was the truth.” Leighanne hissed, but the look in her eyes betrayed her. She dropped her gaze from mine and began shooting daggers at everyone else in the room. “You all think that she did an amazing job. Just wait until the fans and the media start responding.” She threatened as she turned and stalked forcefully out of the room.