Strung Tight (The Road To Rocktoberfest #1) - Ann Lister Page 0,82
I didn’t realize it had gotten that late.”
“Yeah, and we should probably get some sleep,” I agreed.
“How are we deciding who gets the master bedroom on the bus?” Dixon asked.
“I’ll take it,” Mike piped up.
“I’m sure you’d love to call that room home for the next four days, but that’s not the fair way to make that particular decision,” Dixon argued.
“We need to vote,” Potter suggested.
“Guys, full disclosure on the room before you start fist-fighting over who sleeps in there,” I chimed in, and all three of them looked at me. “Dallas and I christened that bed before we left LA.”
“You’ve already fucked on that bed?” Dixon question.
“That’s correct,” I replied.
“Who the hell gave you permission to use the bus?” Potter asked. “I figured it was for us to use when we traveled to a show and nothing more. If I’d known we could party on it after hours, I would have done so.”
“I asked Dagger, and he said yes,” I explained. “It’s not like I have a lot of options for privacy.”
“Did you at least change the sheets?” Mike asked.
“I didn’t have time,” I answered.
“That’s beyond gross,” Potter said.
“Jesus, Fletch,” Dixon said. “Take the room. None of us wants to sleep on top of your dried spunk.”
I was the only one laughing at this point, but I was also relieved Dixon wasn’t busting my balls over my admission to fucking Dallas on that bed. We began to walk back to the area where all the buses were parked, still sipping our beer. It was a gorgeous night, although a bit chilly in the desert. I saw our guards fall in behind us, which was an odd reality. They followed us back to our bus and then one of them went inside first to make sure it was clear before allowing us to get onto the vehicle.
“Are you boys in for the night?” one of the guards asked.
“Yep, we’ve got a busy day tomorrow,” I stated.
“Sounds good. Lock up and don’t let anyone on board without clearing it with us first,” the guard said. “You have my phone number, so text if you need to leave the vehicle for any reason.”
“Will do,” Mike replied, and we watched the guard walk down the center hallway and exit the bus.
Everyone dropped down into the first seat they found, and we stared at each other for a moment. Mike grabbed a bottle of vodka on the table and filled the shot glasses left there from earlier. He passed one to each of us and then raised his in the air.
“Before we head to bed, I want to hit pause on this weekend and say how fucking happy I am right now,” Mike said. “I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished so far and so excited for what could come from our performance this weekend. I couldn’t imagine sharing this experience with any other group of musicians. We are going to rock this show!”
“Salut!” We all cheered in unison and then tossed the clear liquid down the back of our throats.
“This weekend is going to be epic no matter how our performance goes,” Potter said. “The contacts we’re making and the people we’re meeting are bound to lead to something down the line even if the record labels aren’t interested in signing us.”
“I agree,” Dixon stated. “This weekend is going to be good no matter what.”
“How do you guys feel about the choir Dagger is having join us on stage?” I asked.
“I’m curious to hear how they sound mixed with us,” Dixon commented.
“Me too,” Mike added.
“It could add an interesting layer to the song,” Potter said. “I know when other bands have added elements like an orchestra or even backup singers, it really makes you sit up and pay attention to the song. It just adds an extra something, like a ‘wow’ factor, and maybe that’s what we need for an ending to our set.”
“I agree, but the fact we haven’t even heard these guys sing or rehearsed with them yet, rattles me,” I said.
“We’ll be working with them tomorrow,” Mike said, “and if we don’t like what they add, Dagger said we can opt not to use them.”
“He hasn’t steered us wrong yet,” Dixon commented.
“You’re right about that,” I replied. “Dagger has bent over backwards to give us an edge to our performances, so I have to trust he knows what our sound needs.”
“Our trusting Dagger’s direction for the band is what got us here, Fletch,” Mike reminded me.