She Rocks My World
80's Rocker, Edward Cullen, is the frontman for the enormously popular band, Cullen.
He's every woman's dream; handsome, wealthy, and talented, but the elusive rocker has something to hide until an overwhelmingly gifted, doe-eyed beauty steals his heart at first sight and sound.
A/N: Beta'd by the lovely Fran.
I apologize for not updating for the last blankety blank months. The muse was silent. BUT she's back. Enjoy this chapter. Love you guys.
Chapter 27: And the Beat Goes On.
BPOV
While Edward is in a deep conversation with Christy, Jen and I sit on the sofa as I munch away on a small bowl of fresh baby carrots. The one thing I learned about Jen is that she's very loyal to Ali, and since Ali and I are best friends, she extends that trust to me.
"Bella, I hated leaving Edward and the guys." She sighs, looking at her cuticles and picking at the edges. "I had some family problems going down and they needed me. Edward accepted all of that while insisting that I still got my weekly check."
I quietly ask, "What happened to your family?"
"My mom was sick." She clears her throat, holding back her tears. She speaks but py's just a whisper, "She died."
"I'm so sorry." I grab her hand.
"It was one of those quick things. One minute, she was fine, the next she was sick … and then, she was gone. I'm worried about my little sister; she's only seventeen. I can't leave her alone."
"But where is she now?"
"Right now she's with Aunt Tulley, but not for long. She's going into assisted living since my mom was her caretaker. I going to need this job even more now, to support both of us, and Ali said she'd talk to Edward about bringing my sister on the road with us." She shakes her head. "But on the Cullen bus, there's too much going on for her to be around. All the guys, plus Garrett and his many groupies. I know he's found Kate, and he's really into her. But I don't want my sister exposed to that kind of closeness, if you know what I mean."
I straightforward say, "Then, you and your sister … What's her name?"
"Amanda."
"Then, you and Amanda can travel on the Swan bus. Believe me, we're harmless. Edward and I keep our affection very private. And so does Ria with Barry." I laugh. "Jasper calls the buses Heaven and Hell."
"That sounds like Jazz." She shakes her head and huffs.
"What about school?" I ask.
Jen shakes her head. "Yeah, that's a problem. I don't want her to drop out her senior year, but I don't have a solution. She's a pretty good student, just very shy."
I bite my lip. "Well, I'm certified. We could all homeschool her."
Jen asks, "You'd do that?"
I smile. "I think it could be fun as we're traveling from city to city. I can do the basic English classes, and everyone has a specialty. Jazz is a history buff, and believe it or not, Garrett is amazing in math. Ria has an art degree, while Barry's big in science. Bitsy has a love of Europe, and Danny, well, he's from Boston. Then, we all know a little bit about music," I tease.
"But you'll be busy with the tour."
"The tour is already set up, there'll be plenty of time on the bus. Edward has it all down to the minute."
"Yeah, that's him … like a science."
"Besides, it will keep everyone's head straight. Both bands have become a family. With Amanda's best interest in mind, we can all help you. With the city to city traveling, we'll all pull together and focus on Amanda's classes.
"Thanks, Bella." She squeezes my hand.
"Ali's great with a sewing machine and Kate does hair and makeup. Hey, I'm sure Christy can teach her to cook and the basics of nutrition. I know Edward will agree to this."
"What do I agree to?" He asks as he sits on the arm of the sofa. "I'm not getting married to you on those pulleys." He grabs a carrot and chews.
I poke him. "No, silly." I look at Jen and wink. "Edward, we're going to have a child."
His eyes widen, and he spits out some carrot pieces. "What?"
Patting him on the back, I giggle. "No, we're not having a baby."
"Then, what?" he coughs.
I tell him about Jen's situation.
Edward glares at Jen. "You could have come to me."
"It didn't feel right. I mean, you knew I had some problems with my family, and you blindly gave me money. How could I ask for more?"
"Jen, you never asked for that money, but I figured you needed it. Well, Ali hinted you did." He huffs, stands and does his pacing thing. "You've been with us since the first jam session. You set up our first gig, and you fought for our pay with every venue. You're one of us."
She mumbles, "I know."
"So, you didn't tell me, you told Ali, and I went along with it all." He emphasizes, "Yeah, blindly." Edward stops pacing and pleads, "We all want you here, Jen." He snickers. "Even when I'd give you a hard time."
She smirks. "I know."
"I'm sorry about your mom. She made the best mac and cheese."
Jen smiles, "Yeah, she did."
"So, go get your sister and don't hide things from us … especially me." He stares her down.
Emmett stands at the doorway holding bags from Taco Bell. "Edward, when are you gonna learn? It's all girlie stuff. Let Ali and Bella handle these things."
Garrett rushes in. "Okay, who wants bean burritos?"
"And at that note," I grab Edward's hand. "We're out of here." I drag Jen with us.
Everyone laughs.
Three days later after playing in Olympia, Spokane, and Kennewick, there are problems with the pulley system at the venue in Portland. As I make my descent to the stage, the cords twist, leaving me suspended overhead like a cat caught in a tree.
Edward panics, screaming for the technicians to get me out of there, as he hops down from the stage.
I roll my eyes. I'm not in any danger.
I shout at him to relax. "I'm not going to plummet to my death."
He still stands in one of the aisles, looking very helpless, pulling his hair and walking in circles. "You don't know that."
"Edward, it's twisted not torn apart."
"But you don't know that."
"I trust Barry's design."
The crowd gets into our banter and cheers me on, "Go, Bella. Go, Bella!"
"I now know how G feels," he complains.
Garrett stands next to Edward, grabbing him around the shoulders, shouting, "Feel my pain."
Barry's in the rafters, reassuring me, "It's all good."
The pulley moves forward without the music. Once I hit the stage, I nod, apologize to the crowd, and they erupt in applause and whistles. We continue our opening song.
Edward stews the entire show and stomps backstage pleading with me to omit the pulley entrance.
I try to reason with him, but Ria tells me to hold off, "Let Edward rant and rave, then talk with him. You can't argue your case when he's seeing red."
So, we watch him pace around with his arms flailing from side to side.
Garrett then escorts him to the Cullen bus while Jasper mumbles something about smoking a joint and calming him down.
Once I jump up to follow, Emmett carefully places his hands on my shoulders and leans down. "Bella, this is guy stuff. We'll handle him."
I nod shaking my head. "Okay." He gives me one of his bear hugs and takes after Garrett.
Ria smiles. "I know this is hard, but he was scared for you."
"I was fine."
"We know that, but Edward saw his love in danger. Give him some time."
I look at Barry.
He puts up his hands. "Hey, I'm the last person he wants to see right now. Once he relaxes, I'll explain to him what happened."
"Thank you, Barry."
"Look, we play two more shows in Oregon. Maybe hold off on the entrance until we get to California." He pleads, "Just saying."
"You think there's a problem?" I question.
He huffs. "Only with Edward." He smiles. "But I think from now on, I'll oversee the setup to reassure him."
In the next few days of traveling, Barry tinkers with an intense light show in place of the pulleys. With Edward as his companion, the two become very familiar with Home Depot. He seems more relaxed, and no one complains about the change. Jasper likes the light show with its lengthy beams of spotlights in multi colors that flash with each movement of the music. It's impressive, and very time consuming with a new lighting engineer. Plus, the roadies are happy about not having to climb into the rafters at every venue. Yeah, we'll give it up to Bon Jovi and let them swing from the stage to the audience.
Without having to rehearse my flights, I prepare for Amanda's education by checking with Forks' High School about the requirements for homeschooling her. Under Jen's guardianship and our home base as Forks, I acquire all the necessary classes and curriculum. Happily, they agree to sponsor Amanda's final year thanks to Carlisle close friend, Principal Banner.
Jen rejoins us with Amanda a few days later, after an interview with said principal. Loaded with books, pamphlets, and a schedule for the coming school year, we are ready to rock 'n roll.
Amanda is quiet, well-behaved, and is a bit starstruck. Every time, we pass by her, she giggles and covers her face with her hands.
Emmett shamelessly flirts with her in a big brother way, but it's Garrett who becomes protective, guarding over her with no protests from Kate. She thinks it's cute. Edward says Kate has an agenda with the big 'M' and children. But it's Jasper's intense stares that have me at a disadvantage. I don't know if he's keeping an eye out for her or us.
A/N: Hmmm, what's that supposed to mean?
A/N:
A few readers wanted to know the tour schedule. Here are all the cities in order:
Opener in Seattle, Wa … Olympia, Ellensburg, Spokane, Kennewick.
Portland, Or ... Salem and Medford.
Sacramento, Ca ...San Francisco, Monterrey, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles
Las Vegas … Phoenix, Az ...Flagstaff, Cedar City
Salt Lake City, Id ... Boise, Idaho Falls
Helena, Mt … Billings
Sheridan, Wy … Cheyenne
Denver, Co … Buena Vista, Durango
Santa Fe, NM … Roswell
El Paso, Tx … Odessa, San Angelo, Austin, Dallas
Oklahoma City, Ok
Wichita, Ks … Topeka
Lincoln, Ne … Omaha
Sioux Falls, SD … Pierre
Bismarck, ND … Grand Forks
St. Paul, Mn ... Sioux City
Des Moine, IA
Jefferson City, Mo … Ozark
Little Rock, Ar
Shreveport, La … Baton Rouge, New Orleans
Jackson, Ms
Montgomery, Al … Mobile
Tallahassee, Fl … Orlando, Miami, Jacksonville
Savannah, Ga … Atlanta
Columbus, SC
Charlotte, NC … Raleigh, Greensboro, Asheville,
Knoxville, Tn … Nashville
Frankfort, Ky
Springfield, In … Indianapolis, Ft. Wayne
Chicago, Il
Madison, Wi … Milwaukee, Grand Rapids,
Grand Rapids, Mi … Lansing, Ann Arbor
Cleveland, OH … Columbus
Charleston, SC
Richmond, Va
Dover, De
Washington, DC
Baltimore, MD
Harrisburg, Pa … Philadelphia
Trenton, NJ
Hartford, Ct
Providence, RI
Boston, Ma
Portland Me
Concord, NH
Montpellier, Vt
Albany, NY … NYC
Did they visit you? Months of traveling in forty-eight states, ninety-seven cities.