Show Night

Around 11, the phone rang, startling them awake. Jennifer fumbled for it. “Yeah,” she said.

“Jen, it’s Cheryl. We’re in Providence!” She paused. “Uh, did I wake you?”

“That’s okay,” Jennifer answered. “We should be getting out of bed anyway.”

“Again,” Richie added, making Cheryl squeak. Richie groaned. “I don’t wanna go to work.”

“He’s still THERE?” Cheryl said, laughing. “Isn’t he going to be late”

Jennifer chuckled. “They’re not going to start without him. I’ll get his yummy ass out of bed and showered and dressed,” she said. “We’ll be in town to meet your train, don’t worry.”


By the time Richie and Jen got to the train station, it was 12:30. Jennifer had a sign that said “WILLOW” and Cheryl saw it right away. She ran over for a hug from Jennifer, then stepped back and stuck her hand out. “I’m Cheryl,” she said to Richie. “Really nice to meet you.”

“What, no hug?” Richie said and pulled Cheryl in for a hug and slightly lingering kiss, smiling at the strawberry lip gloss he tasted. “Baby,” he said to Jennifer, “how many more friends you got?”

“Tons,” she answered, laughing. “But nobody said you have to kiss them ALL.”

Richie dropped the girls off at their hotel, still annoyed that she wouldn’t stay with him. Jennifer was adamant that she wanted to spend this time with her friends. She had another girlfriend who was coming in to the hotel after work, and they three of them were having dinner before the concert. They had planned this long before she ever met Richie. She didn’t want to ditch her friend, and she didn’t want to ask for favors.

Richie went for sound check, and was totally distracted. Jon finally told him to “shut the fuck up and just play” after he messed up the words to yet another song. Chagrined, Richie just shrugged and smiled.

That night, the girls got to the show early. “Are you going to try to get backstage to see Richie?” Megan asked.

“Nope,” Jennifer said. “He has stuff to do, and besides, they’d never let me back there.”

“I’ll betcha Obie would,” Cheryl insisted.

“Maybe,” Jennifer said, “but he wouldn’t let you guys back, and I’m not ditching you. Now, c’mon, let’s find our seats.”

Cheryl had fan club seats, and was close to the front of the stage. Jennifer and Megan had seats behind the stage, but close to. When the lights went down, Cheryl texted Jen. “I can’t believe we’re actually here!”

When Richie took the stage, he scanned the first few rows for Jennifer, but couldn’t find her. Cheryl texted again. “He’s looking for you.”

David saw Jen right away.

When the house lights were still up, and he was taking his place on the dais, David looked around, as he usually does, and did a double-take when he saw Jennifer and another woman screaming and waving. Jennifer waved her cowboy hat at David and blew him a kiss, which he returned.

At one point during the opening song, David motioned Richie over. “I see your girlfriend doesn’t rate good seats there stud,” and tilted his chin toward the back of the stage where Richie saw Jennifer with another girl he hadn’t met yet, dancing and laughing and waving.

Richie smiled and said to David, “She wouldn’t tell me where her seats were,” then continued with the show. David kept looking up where Jen and her friend were, and smiled and winked at them often. Richie kept turning to the back of the stage; ostensibly to get a drink of water or fresh piece of gum, but really he wanted a glimpse of Jennifer.

After the final bows, and once Richie was back in his dressing room, he exchanged text messages with Jennifer.

“Come back to hotel w/me?”

“Sorry, baby, already on train. You were awesome. Oh yeah, the others were, too lol.”

“Dammit, I’m coming over”

“Room 202 and hurry”

Richie hurried to get cleaned up, and set out for the Midtown. It was a modest hotel, bordering on shabby, tucked in behind Symphony Hall, and close to the train. He shook his head. He’d put her up anywhere, she knew that. Didn’t she?

He went up to room 202 and knocked. A woman answered who was not Jen. “Holy shit,” Megan said, then turned into the room. “Jen, your boyfriend is here.” She turned back to Richie and introduced herself. Richie leaned into kiss her when Jennifer came out of the bathroom, freshly showered, and in her nightclothes.

“Hey you,” she said happily, a flush creeping over her skin. “I see you can’t seem to keep your lips off my friends..”

“Hey yourself,” Richie answered, his eyes darkening with desire as he looked at Jennifer.

Megan cleared her throat. “Uh, I’ll be in Cheryl’s room,” she said, and grabbing her suitcase, disappeared through the adjoining doors into the next room.

Neither Richie nor Jennifer noticed.

The next morning, Jennifer woke to a pounding on the door. Richie slept on, oblivious. “What the hell is that?” Jennifer asked, looking sleepily around the room. On the nightstand, Richie’s phone buzzed. Richie didn’t move. “Fuck,” Jennifer said and staggered out of bed. Somehow, with their overnight acrobatics, the sheet had come loose from the mattress. Jennifer wrapped it around her, holding it closed at her breasts, hiked the duvet up over a naked Richie, and stalked to the door.

“What the hell -- ” Jennifer’s tirade was stopped mid-stride as she flung the door open on a gorgeous and very irritated Jon. He was on the phone, and when he snapped his phone shut, the buzzing on her nightstand stopped.

“Jesus, he’s still in bed, isn’t he?” Jon said, by way of greeting.

“Good morning to you too.” Jennifer said, rolling her eyes. “And no, it’s 9:00 in the morning. Of course he’s up. I always hang out in a toga with bed-head.”

The door to Cheryl’s room opened, and Megan came out, dressed for work. She took in Jen’s attire, and the man she was talking to, and smiled. “Damn Jennifer, when I die, I wanna come back as you.” She winked at Jon. “Great show last night,” she said.

“Thanks,” Jon answered.

He stood back to let Megan give Jen a hug and didn’t miss her whispered comment. “Jesus Jen, both of them?”

Jennifer laughed and shook her head. “No, one is more than enough for me. Go to work, you slut,” she said. “I’ll call you later, after his majesty and sleeping beauty in there leave.”

Megan peeked into Jen’s room, and saw Richie’s leg sticking out from under the covers. It was tanned all the way from toe to hip. She sighed. “Yep, I definitely wanna come back as you.”

“Bye, Megan,” Jennifer said, as the other woman walked away. “Now,” she said, turning her attention back to Jon. “What in the hell could he possibly be late for this early in the day?”

“Well, Ms. Know-it-all, we had a breakfast thing today, and he missed it.”

“That’s just cruel,” Jennifer said, smiling.

“What is?”

“Making him get out of bed that early on the day after a show.”

“Hell, woman,” Jon said, amused, “he sleeps in all the time regardless of whether we have a show or not. Jon strode past Jennifer into the room.

“Come on in,” she said sarcastically, and shut the door behind him.

Jon took in the room. There were twin queen beds, and he wondered how in the hell Richie fit in there. There was a standard-issue wing chair in the corner, that looked like it had seen better days, and a desk and chair by the window that was covered in Jen’s stuff. “I thought you had dough?” he said. “This is the best you can do?”

“No, you jerk,” Jennifer said. “Megan and Cheryl are on a tighter budget than I am, and they wouldn’t let me pay for a suite at the Ritz. So I picked someplace we could all stay together.” She looked lovingly at Richie, and Jon nearly swallowed his tongue. “He was pissed at me for not letting him get me a hotel room.”

“Yeah, he does like to get his own way, and can get downright bitchy when he doesn’t,” Jon answered. “Almost as bitchy as me.” He crossed the small room to the unused bed, and took a pillow from it. Smirking, he put the pillow over Richie’s face, and pressed.

After about two seconds, Richie started struggling. Jon let go before Richie could land the punch he threw. “Get up, princess,” Jon said. “We actually have work to do.”

“Fuck you we do, Kidd,” Richie said. “It’s nowhere near lunchtime yet.”

“Did you forget that breakfast we had?” Jon shook his head.

“Oh yeah,” Richie said, sitting up. He pulled the blanket with him as he got out of bed and aimed for the small bathroom. “Sorry about that.” To Jennifer, he sounded anything but.

A few minutes later, the toilet flushed, and Richie came out wearing a towel around his waist. “I was up late last night,” he said to Jon, throwing a wink at Jennifer. Jon looked at the red-faced woman and back at the bed.

“Yeah, I see that. How the fuck did you manage not to fall out of that bed?”

“I had incentive to stay in it, don’t you think?” Richie said, pulling Jennifer to him and kissing her temple.

“Yeah, yeah,” Jon said, smiling indulgently. “Now get cleaned up and let’s go. You do still have a job to do.”

Richie gave a long-suffering sigh. “Oh, alright.” He pulled Jennifer in for a long, slow kiss. “That’s gonna have to hold me over until tonight.”

“Tomorrow,” Jennifer corrected. “Remember? I have to take Krissy home tonight, and then I’m coming back to pick up the girls to come to New York.”

Jon laughed. “Jen, one thing to know about Richie, if you tell him something he doesn’t want to hear, he promptly forgets it.” Richie shot him a murderous look, which Jon just shrugged off. “Go get dressed,” he told Richie. “I clearly have some educating to do.”

Richie leaned in to whisper in Jennifer’s ear. “Don’t listen to anything he says, darlin’. I’m perfect.”

“I think so,” she answered, and licked Richie’s ear. “Now go get ready for work.” Reluctantly, Richie went into the bathroom.

Jon had made himself at home, flopping down on the unused bed, and sitting back against the headboard. “So,” he said quietly, crossing his ankles and lacing his fingers on his taut stomach. “Are you going to be around tomorrow night? You do know what day it is, right?”

Jennifer laughed. “Yes, of course I know. But listen, I’m not sure. I know we’re planning to hit the city sometime late-afternoon; I imagine we’re doing shopping and dinner...I don’t really know what the plans are. I had these plans long before I met Rich, you know.”

“I know,” Jon said, nodding. “Well, let us know where you’ll be, and we’ll see if we can’t get you two together.”

“You’d hang out with my friends?”

Jon shrugged. “Sure, why not?

Jennifer just shook her head. “I’ll definitely call you.”

Richie flung the bathroom door open. “I hope you didn’t pay any attention to him,” he said. “Jon just likes to hear the sound of his own voice.”

“Fuck you, man, lots of people like my voice!” Jon grinned while Richie rolled his eyes.

“Yeah sure. You could sound like shit as long as you wore your pants tight. The women don’t care what you sound like.”

“Oh, and they give a shit what you sound like?”

Jennifer was laughing at the two of them. “Boys,” she said. “I’m about to drop this sheet and go take a shower. Only one of you wants to see that, and the both of you have stuff to do. Now,” she kissed Richie firmly on the mouth and Jon chastely on the cheek. “Get your asses out of my room.” Jen stalked to the door and opened it, standing in the doorway and ushering them out.