Strung Tight (The Road To Rocktoberfest #1) - Ann Lister Page 0,69

and I’ll ask him myself.”

“How long is the drive to Vegas?” I asked.

“Vegas is about a four-hour ride from LA, but the event is in the far northwest corner of Nevada near a town called Black Rock City, which is in the opposite direction of Vegas,” Dallas explained. “It’s about a ten-hour ride from LA and out in the middle of nowhere on the same site as the Burning Man celebration. We’ll drive and drive, and you’ll think we’re lost, and then suddenly, this whole outside venue will appear with a shitload of people hanging around. There’s even a makeshift campground located on the property for people to spend the weekend with food stations and lots of Porta-Potties.”

“Sounds like the original 1969 Woodstock event,” I commented.

“Very similar but without all the rain and mud,” Dallas said and chuckled.

The thought of getting up on this particular stage washed over me, and my skin prickled. How was this my reality? I had no idea if we were truly ready for a performance of this size. Dagger said we were, and lots of others said the same, but I didn’t know if they were stroking our egos or not, and that worried me.

“You’re thinking too hard, Fletch,” Dallas said and gave my shoulder a shove to pull me out of my own head. “What’s going on?”

“You’ll laugh if I tell you,” I said.

“I know ways to force you to talk.” He teased with the lift of one dark brow.

I gazed at him, and the warmth spilling from his eyes was so far from being threatening that it was almost laughable, and once again, I found the stress melting away from me.

“I’m terrified we’re not good enough to play at this event,” I blurted. “I mean, what if Dagger pulled some strings or called in a favor and that’s the only reason we’re on the line-up? What if everyone at the event thinks Dagger is the only reason we’re there?”

“Fletcher! You auditioned for this gig, and they invited you to play,” Dallas informed me. “Dagger had nothing to do with that. Your tape was sent into the event coordinators just like all the other newbie bands. You all went through the same vetting process. There isn’t a chance in hell they’d invite you to play at a concert of that magnitude if you were subpar. They have strict standards, and they wouldn’t bend them, even for Dagger.”

“Maybe he called them, gave them a heads-up about our audition tape, and told them to accept us,” I continued to sputter. “You know how things in this business work.”

“I’ve heard Chaos play, and I’ve listened to the newer bands who’ve played at past Rocktoberfests. Believe me, your band kicks ass, Fletch, and your voice is killer, so rich and raspy like a seasoned rocker. Your sound has always reminded me of Aaron Lewis from the band Staind. I’m not saying that because you just fucked me either. I’m being serious as shit right now. You guys are fantastic, and it’s not going to take long before Chaos is one of the headlining bands at events like this. Trust me.”

I flashed him a genuine smile, and he shoved me a second time. Christ, I was really starting to fall for him and feel things that had me utterly and wonderfully surprised. It was getting to a point where I couldn’t ignore what was happening between us or pretend it was anything other than it was. When something clicked together like we did and it felt this good, it was worth fighting for. I so wanted to fall hard for Dallas.

“Have some confidence, babe,” Dallas said and ran his fingers along my jaw. “You’ve more than earned your spot at this event.”

I looked at him, and our eyes met. “You called me ‘babe,’” I said out loud, thinking it was in my head.

Dallas nodded. “I did. Is that okay?” he asked.

“More than okay,” I admitted. “It sounds really nice.”

“I’m glad,” he said and stood up. “I gotta get dressed and head home.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay here with me?” I asked.

“You mean, like overnight?”

“Sure, why not?”

“Because my father will send out a search party for my ass if I don’t get home before midnight,” he admitted.

“It’s not like you’re twelve,” I said.

“You’ve forgotten that I’ve spent time in jail, and Skully was not amused,” Dallas said with a sarcastic tone.

I was sensing there might be a lot more to that story, but I knew when Dallas