Chapter Six: The Blue Note
Nick smiled to himself absently as he made notes during the meeting. He remembered the day and night before thinking of the interaction between him and Marie. She was definitely the type of girl he could see something happening with. She was kind and funny not to mention she was indeed very beautiful to him. That realization right there made things all the more complicated though. After all she was only here for a few weeks on vacation. If he did let anything progress between the two of them what would happen when she'd inevitably have to return to New York?
He sighed internally mocking himself for getting so far ahead that what reality was presenting him at the moment. And then...the even bigger reality hit him. She had no idea that he was a single father...let alone a father of two little girls. Where would he fit that into a conversation?
"Hey...Marie, guess what I happen to have a ton of extra baggage, I'm a widow with two kids...surprise!" No that would be ridiculous. Or even better. "I'm a single father...oh what's that you say where's their mom? Oh well she uh...isn't in the picture anymore." He shook his head at himself for even thinking about telling Marie about his daughters or the fact that the only woman he had ever loved died a little over two years ago.
"Care to share?" Howie asked as the meeting ended. All of the guys had noticed Nick's distracted behavior. Smiling one minute, pensive and angsty the next. His band mates had all become rather well aware of his mental state over the past two years always trying to help him, support him whenever they could through the rough times he'd fallen upon.
Nick looked over at him and sighed he knew there was no way of getting around it. He'd eventually have to explain things to them anyways so he better get it all out now. "I think I met someone." He said even unsure of his own words. In the literal sense he had met someone, someone who he was interested in and even completely attracted to which was a whole new concept to him.
"You think you met someone, or you actually met someone?" AJ asked all of them glancing between each other, hope filling their eyes. They knew not to get their hopes up but with his recent rash of horrible blind dates they were hopeful that he was showing interest in at least someone of the female persuasion.
"Angel had a friend come stay at her place while she's in Ibiza. Well Aaron was supposed to feed Romes and Jada but asked me to head over there. I did and she was there." He said leaving out the details from later on.
"And...? What love at first sight? Hardly your style." Howie quipped back skeptically.
Nick chuckled, "No I took her out...and she made me dinner...we uhh kissed." He said finding his thoughts with him as they came to him. "It was one of those perfect days you know? Good conversation, good company, good food..."
"Good necking..." AJ added making Nick roll his eyes. "So you're wiggin' out because?" He asked wondering what the big problem was. If anything he was more happy to hear about this event than the others just simply because he'd gotten irritated by the moping ‘I'm never going to find anyone else' Nick and was starting to like this one again.
"Just it's been so long since I've actually been genuinely attracted to someone and I don't know how to react. I mean she's only here on vacation, what do I tell her about my life? The girls? How do I even tell them?" He asked rambling all of his ideas out. He couldn't quite comprehend how to handle the situation, a situation of his own making.
The three of them laughed at his apparent concern and worry about what his children would think of a possible romance. "Nick, man you've known her what a day? Come on you know how to handle this. You don't tell her about the girls until you're serious about seeing where this goes. Hell if I were you I would not be coming up for air any time soon. I mean come on you have the rest of the week to be the single bachelor, no attachments or anything to worry about. So why not just be the swinging single you used to be if only for a week? And then after that if you decide to do anything farther than this week, then think about the girls. I really don't think this is quite the crisis you're making it out to be." Howie reasoned.
Nick sighed and shrugged, "It's not that easy I mean I'm so used to being the father that I almost don't remember how to be the man..." He replied still feeling so unsure of himself. It had been six years since he'd really had to really think about the whole process of dating someone, even if only on a casual level. He couldn't believe he was even talking to them about this. In his past he'd normally kept his love life pretty private only relaying details on the latest conquest and not about any emotion or apprehension behind his motives. He blamed Anna for that one. She was always big into talking things out, emotionally and otherwise. He guessed that after years of being subjected to her ways he'd finally, after she was gone, had succumbed to them himself.
"Nick, it is that easy. Just go with what you feel in the moment, don't think about anything else. But do remember to use protection okay?" Brian reminded laughing at him slightly all of them amused at the apprehension to his rant.
---
Marie smiled as she walked out of the hair salon happy that her thick locks now felt lighter than ever. She'd layered it and gotten a set of thick fringe over her brow, a very mod chic New York style the stylist had said. She felt refreshed and completely new from the experience, giving herself a full spa experience. She had a massage appointment, had gotten a manicure and pedicure. She made her way to the shops down over to Robertson snickering to herself as she saw a multitude of camera men following a few people making a huddled mass of flashes and yelling for pictures.
She laughed to herself wondering why celebrities would subject themselves to such scrutiny? Weren't there other places to shop? After all it was LA. Then her mind switched thinking of Nick...he was a celebrity wasn't he? Did he have to deal with things like that? She shook her head at herself as she imagined his picture in the tabloids smiling as he attending some red carpet event or walking down the street shielding himself from the glare of the paparazzi flash. She rolled her eyes at herself as she walked into a store a small trendy boutique that she'd always heard that LA was famous for. The sensation of the few kisses they shared came back to her and she rolled her eyes at herself. It wasn't that good of a kiss anyways...Her mind tried to reason but she knew that her body had reacted in a much more positive way to the contact than she really wanted to admit.
She smirked seeing the various items thinking of the night before as she surveyed the cocktail dresses. She thought of his proposal...a jazz club was something she could totally enjoy and then they wouldn't have to be alone, she could meet some of his friends who presumably were from the city too. For a brief moment she realized she did want to go out with him that night, but at the same time what if she was just playing into his game? Hadn't he asked her out after he'd gotten off the phone with another girl?
Interrupting her thoughts, her phone buzzed in her purse. She reached for it smiling as she saw Becca's number across the screen. "Hey you..." She said into the phone feeling very happy to hear from her. It was definitely a welcome respite from the Nick-centered thoughts she'd been having.
"Ooh you sound good, did you take my advice and get it on with some hottie?" Becca remarked noting the already relaxed and happy tone to her friend's voice. The vacation only a day or so into it she already seemed to sound like a completely different person. Happier than usual, though not to say Marie wasn't normally a happy person, but there was something different in her voice, something had certainly happened to her.
Marie sighed, "Not exactly..." She said not really wanting to get into the entire conversation of her day with Nick...their awkward humorous meeting, the day trip they spent exploring his favorite places in the city, the dinner and the subsequent kissage that had occurred.
"Not exactly? What did you hook up with a movie star or something?" Becca asked wondering exactly what had happened. She thought it was rather amusing to hear the evasive tone in Marie's voice. It made her think that maybe, for once she'd finally gotten out of her shell and was hopefully going to experience life for a change instead of hiding among her pastries and cakes and complaining that she'd never find anyone.
Marie rolled her eyes, he wasn't exactly a movie star, although he'd been in a few low budget ones, or so he'd told her. He was a celebrity wasn't he? That's the really odd part of the whole situation. He didn't act like her conception of what a celebrity acted like. He was more normal and humble than what she definitely had expected. "Or something..." She didn't really want to get into specifics. She knew that Becca wouldn't care one iota if he was in the industry or not so really she could definitely leave that part out of the conversation for as long as she could.
Becca gasped a little, she couldn't have actually decided to go as buck wild as Becca had suggested could she? "You had sex?!" She shrieked into the phone making Marie pull it away from her ear. She had to admit
"No...but I am going to kill Angel for not telling me about her brother." She replied thinking of how Angel had conveniently left out the fact that she had an older brother. Sure she'd told her that she had other siblings aside from Aaron but for as close as she and Nick seemed to be she would have thought she'd have mentioned it. But then again Angel was very protective of her siblings. She definitely always talked about how girls wanted to use Aaron for the money he'd earned. So maybe it was really out of her protective instinct that she didn't mention Nick.
"Her brother? But you've met Aaron." She reminded also not knowing about Nick. Everyone at the shop had met both Angel and Aaron, back when Marie had done their 18th, birthday cake.
"Not that brother...her older brother..." Marie retorted placing special emphasis on the word ‘older'.
"Cute?" Becca asked wondering if that was where this conversation was going. She knew that Angel was very good looking and that Aaron wasn't half bad either, so maybe it was all in the genes and the entire family was pretty good looking.
"Gorgeous, actually in an almost annoying sort of way. He stopped by to feed Romeo and Jada and then we kind of spent the day together. I made him dinner and he kissed me...twice." She replied figuring she should just use the direct approach. Leaving out the minor details of how they completely clicked in conversation and had spent the day talking, driving and walking around the city was all irrelevant. The main events however, were not.
Becca gasped a little, "Ooo so a total hottie kisses you and you don't rip his clothes off and violate him? Marie we've had this talk, a little casual sex can't hurt...Unless you're into that." She quipped making Marie sigh in response. All of sudden Becca swept into concerned best friend mode. "Okay so what's the deal?"
"I mean he's great, nice guy, funny, smart and..." She trailed off not wanting her mind to follow the trail it had already started on. If she let herself go there, if she really went there she'd be obsessing over every little observation, glance, joke and word of the entire evening and she really didn't want to spend her afternoon obsessing about one day.
"And tell me what the kiss was like?" Becca asked wondering if it was as wonderful as she was making it sound. She knew herself that her initial kisses with her husband had been breathtaking herself, but she was only a teenager back then and a kiss to a teenager was a completely different entity to what a kiss was to an adult.
She took a breath and stopped short. "Unbelievable...I mean the chemistry was palpable. It didn't hurt that we had drank two bottles of Bordeaux between the two of us but still Bec...The only thing that stopped us was he got a phone call...from another girl..."
"Oh...do you think she's his girlfriend?" She postulated, that would definitely put a chink in Marie's chain that's for sure. If there was one thing that was a deal breaker for Marie it was a cheater. And that was definitely something she knew she could agree with her on. If he had a girlfriend though, why did he seem so interested in her.
"I don't know it all I saw was the name and I really don't want to jump to conclusions but you know how I am. I see one red flag and I crumble. Then after the call he asks me out! It's like are you serious?" She didn't really want to jump to conclusions...what if she turned out to be completely wrong and he was insulted at her insinuation that he could be so cold hearted. But, then again what if she was right and went against her better judgment and ended up getting hurt?
Becca grinned and shrugged, "Well sweetie think of it this way. He asked you out. So go out, have fun get laid. I mean if he's seeing someone else it's obviously not serious if he's asking you out. Don't think just feel...this could be the best thing for you, to open up, to live and experience some wild wonderful vacation fling. Honestly honey, if I were you I'd go for it, see where it can take you. You might be surprised at the outcome."
Marie bit her lip a surge of confidence coming over her. "You know, you just might be right..." She replied before ringing off with her. She looked around seeing a slinky classy black cocktail dress and picked up her size making her decision about his question, confident for once that she was making the right decision for herself.
---
Nick checked his watch as he looked around the jazz club. He hated to admit it but he hoped that she had certainly changed her mind about that night. He looked at his friends shrugging a little in defeat. He sat back and enjoyed their conversation for a few moments before looking around the room again briefly.
"I don't think she's coming man..." Howie said as he gripped his wife's hand under the table. He felt his heart sink a little, he'd hoped that for Nick's sake at least she had rescinded her other plans and decide to join them for the evening.
"Yeah...was kind of hoping...You know never mind. I am just going to have fun and enjoy being with you two tonight." He replied sighing and smiling at the happy couple. He was really happy for Howie and Leigh they'd been together for so long and only now they'd finally settled down with each other.
At the same moment across the way Marie entered the club hearing the intoxicating music and seeing the band up on the stage she grinned, knowing she had most certainly made the right choice in coming. He had been right, she loved the place. The atmosphere itself spoke of a completely different time and made her almost nostalgic to have seen the times when Jazz clubs were the norm in big cities instead of the glow stick and techno laden places she knew so well. She looked around the room seeing tables and booths and then spotted a familiar blonde head of hair. She smiled and made sure she was in definite view of him. She looked down at her dress and the small white mini jacket she'd also bought to go with her black cocktail dress ensemble.
She watched and looked as he laughed at his friend's joke then scan around the room, presumably looking for her. She smiled as his eyes connected to her form a surprised smile coming over his face. She shrugged and walked over as his party also looked in her direction as well.
He marveled at how she looked, classy and definitely not like most of the women in the place. He stood as she approached taking her small jacket from her shoulders noticing the difference in her hair, the bangs and the layered look to it. As much as it was different, he had to admit it completely suited her and drew all the attention to her eyes. "Sorry I'm late..." She said with a smile as she turned to him appreciatively after he took her jacket revealing her bare shoulders in the off the shoulder dress. She smiled at his friends as he introduced her shaking their hands as she took her seat next to Nick and smiled as his arm was draped behind her on the back of the booth where they sat. Yeah, she was definitely happy with her decision to come out for the evening.
Author's Chapter Notes:
wow i'm so pleased to see everyone is enjoying the story so far! Enjoy another chapter!
Chapter End Notes:
thanks for reading! lemme know what you thought!
