The Lieutenant’s Musician

CHAPTER 1: PERMISSION TO ROCK“Hey Ash, guess what I got?” I looked up to see my best friend and coworker, Amber, hurrying towards me. I grinned at her excitement. She was always amped up about something. She was short with dark blond hair and a quick smile. We’d been friends forever it seemed like. We met in high school when my parents divorced and I’d moved with my dad to the city. Amber had been one of the first people that I’d met and we became instant friends. She and I were both interested in going into medicine. Her mom was a nurse and her dad a surgeon. She never had aspirations about going into the military until she met me. I’d known for a long time that I wanted to go into the Navy. My dad was in the service and still serves today. He never paid much attention to me until he and mom divorced and she gave him full custody of me. Even then, he still didn’t really notice me, being more concerned with the current skirt he was chasing and whatever was going on at the base. I did everything I could to make him proud of me. So far, nothing has worked. I shook away those thoughts and turned my attention to my bubbling friend. “What’s up?” “Guess who’s in town?” “Who?” She held up a pair of tickets. “Mickey and his band are playing a show here before they take a break for the holidays. They have like ten more shows after that, but then they’ll be home for a long break. I can’t wait. I miss him so much.” “I know you do,” I said with a smile. Her boyfriend of three years, Mickey, was a member of a band that toured the world. He was a really good guitarist and he loved to play his music. And he loved Amber too. I always envied her relationship. He was gone a lot during the year, playing show after show. She went to see him when she could, and he came home as often as he could during the tours and he called her every night. Not once had he ever betrayed her trust. She was so in love with him. That was something that I wished for. “He sent me two tickets,” she continued. “And backstage passes. You want to go?” “I don’t know,” I said slowly. “I have some stuff to do here.” “Nothing that can’t wait a day. Aw come on. You like their music as much as I do. Have you ever seen them live?” I shook my head. “No. I’ve never seen them live. But I do love their music. Thanks in large part to you playing it all the time.” Amber refused to be ruffled by my teasing. “Yes well, you have to come with me. Their show is awesome,” she said singing the last word for emphasis. “Besides, squealing guitars. Pounding drums. Sexy men jumping around, singing. Yep. Merry Christmas to me!” she said, kissing the tickets. “What do you say? Want to?” I had to admit that she was right. Whatever I had to do could wait. And I guess I deserved a little fun. “Ok Amber. I’ll go. It might be fun.” “Might be?” she said indignantly. “No sweetie. Not might be. Will be. And you’ll get to meet their lead guitarist. He’s hot. You might like him.” “Amber, I’m not going to meet a guy. I’m going to listen to music.” “Whatever you say, Doc. I’m just saying, I’ve seen you checking him out on the poster. You have to admit he’s sexy.” I shrugged. “I guess so. But even if we do get a chance to talk to them backstage, he’ll be meeting lots of people. He won’t even remember having met me.” ______ Friday evening, I found myself looking forward to the concert. I dressed in my favorite jeans and black silk blouse that I left untucked from my pants. I liked the way it clung against my body, showing off the physique I worked hard to earn. Besides, I didn’t get to dress this way much. I’m either in scrubs or a uniform. I frowned, looking at myself. I probably should wear my whites, I thought. Nah. Tonight, I was a civilian, doing civilian things and hanging out with my bestie. When Amber knocked at my door, I was glad that I’d chosen to wear what I had on. She too wore jeans and a dressy shirt. Her hair, normally pulled back into a bun, hung loose about her shoulders. I grinned at her. “Trying to catch Mickey’s eye, huh?” I teased her. She tossed her blond hair back over her shoulder. “Damn right.” She gave me a look. “Why don’t you let your hair down?” she asked with a frown. “You always wear your hair up.” “Kind of have to,” I said, pointedly. “Yeah, but not tonight. Lose the ponytail.” She reached for the elastic to free my long, dark brown hair. I pulled back just out of her reach. “No,” I said, shaking my head. “Fine then. Wear it. I just think you’d look even hotter with your hair down on your shoulders.” “Hmm. Are you ready to go? We should probably get there early so we can get our seats. And find a parking space.” She waved me on as she went out of the door. “Girl, we are in the front row. Sheesh. If anyone sits in our seats, they have to move. Not us.” The arena was already packed as we got to the entrance. After we went through the security check, Amber went over to one of the greeters wearing a gray jacket. She showed him our tickets and he pointed us to an elevator to take us down to the floor. I’d been to concerts before, but never had I gotten a chance to sit down front. I felt like royalty as we passed the other rows to get to our seats. Fortunately, Amber knew that I hated to be closed in and she’d made sure that I got the aisle seat. Man I could get sweated on from here! This was great! I glanced at Amber who was furiously texting. “I’ll have to thank Mickey for these awesome seats,” I said loudly in her ear. “I’ll tell him,” she answered, not looking up from her text. She grinned suddenly. “He said you’re welcome. He’s backstage, getting ready. He might come out if he can.” I nodded, opening the program I’d bought. I always liked to look at the pictures of the crew and band. There was one face I was looking for. The lead guitarist. Amber had been right when she said that I’d been checking him out. He really was hot with his long brown hair and dark eyes. It was hard to tell about his body from the picture but he appeared to be slim, skinny even. I admired his hands, large with long fingers. Perfect for playing the guitar. “Hey girls.” I looked up to see Mickey. He squatted down in front of us, and Amber threw her arms around his neck. He hugged her back, his eyes fluttering shut as if savoring the feel of her in his arms. I looked away, not wanting to stare or have them see the raw jealousy in my eyes for the relationship that they had. After a moment, he let go of Amber and hugged me. “How are you Ash?” he asked, patting me on the back. “She behaving herself?” I grinned at him. “Yeah. More or less. You know how she is.” He laughed. “Indeed I do. I’m glad you came to the show. It’s going to be a good one.” “They all are good, babe,” Amber said, brushing a lock of his shoulder length blond hair from his face. Mickey smiled at her, all the love he held for her in his blue eyes. He was handsome in a big blond Viking sort of way. He was muscular from years of swinging that guitar around onstage two or three times a week. He always had a big smile on his face and a huge heart. It was no wonder that Amber was in love with him. A shrill whistle sounded, almost drowned out by the crowd talking and the music tracks playing. But Mickey heard it. He grinned. “They’re calling for me. See you girls after the show. Drew will come get you to bring you backstage so you don’t get caught up in the crowds.” He leaned down and kissed Amber one more time, and stood up. “Enjoy the show.” “Bye Mickey,” I said, waving. “Good luck tonight, babe,” Amber called. He waved and hurried around the stage to the back. Amber watched him with a stupid smile on her face. “God he’s sexy,” she murmured. I shook my head at her. “You need some time alone?” I teased her. Amber gave me a wink. “I’ll get it later,” she said, still smiling. I forgot about everything else as the show finally got started. The arena went completely dark save the emergency exit lights and I gripped my own fists in my lap. I hated the dark. I always have. It bothered me to not be able to see what’s happening around me. Even as a little kid, I’d lay awake and listen to my parents arguing. It was during the night that my mom left. I held my breath, waiting for the lights to come back on. And they did. With a bang. The stage was filled with smoke and flashing lights and the air vibrated with the beat of the drums and squealing guitars. I forgot about the dark as the band began the first set. Damn but they were good. I found myself letting the music get into my veins and take over the beat of my heart. Beside me, Amber was singing along to most of the songs and I wished suddenly that I knew the lyrics as well. Oh well. I’d remedy that as soon as I got the chance. Suddenly, a plume of smoke separated and he stepped out of the mist. He strode to the middle of the stage, leading the band into the next song. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him as he played, each note etching itself in my memory to think about later when I was alone. He stood in a wide-legged stance, holding the guitar straight up as he pounded out every note. His head fell back and the look on his face was one of sublime pleasure. He made love to the music, using that poor guitar in his grip as the catalyst to let it flow free. His eyes were shut tight and he grimaced as if he were fighting for the next note. Then he hit the last note, or so I thought. He stood there, head back and his eyes closed. His back was arched and he stood, holding that note. His finger wiggled against the string, making a steady vibrato on the high note. He held it, even after the band paused. It was long, longer than it should have been. Longer than I could hold my breath. And I was surprised to find that I was holding my breath as I waited with that poor guitar to be released from that note. I stared at him, enthralled by the look on his face and I suddenly longed to kiss him, to know if he looked this way when he made love. Would he hold off, making my body hum and beg for release as he was doing to the guitar? Would I hold out that long? Could I hold out that long? I gripped the armrests of my chair, my body lifting with the sound of the single note. And then he opened his eyes. His gaze met mine and held. I could only stare at him. His brow furrowed and he squinted in the lights trying to see my face clearly. I licked my suddenly dry lips and his eyes fluttered closed briefly before he looked at me again. Please. I don’t know if I said the word out loud but I felt my lips moving. The man’s teeth caught his lower lip and then he nodded slightly and released the note to the rest of the group. It was almost over and the brighter lights began to pulse with the final bars of the song. He stepped to the edge of the stage, his eyes on me. The rest of the group was quiet as he began to play faster and faster until his fingers were a blur on the frets though I heard each and every note clearly. He was showing off, letting me know that he still controlled the tempo. I lifted my chin in an almost defiant way. Oh no, baby. He lifted a dark brow as he finished his solo. I sank back into my chair, breathing hard as if I’d been playing the song and not him. He bowed, waving at the crowd. His eyes fastened on me again and I lifted my hands, clapping along with everyone else. He strode to the edge of the stage, stopping in front of me. He bowed, his eyes meeting mine. When he straightened, he lifted two fingers to his lips. A shiver went through me and I nodded. The corners of his lips curved just slightly and he backed away to start the next piece. I sat back in my chair, rattled to my core. What had just happened? I felt wound up, needing some relief. But that was stupid, right? He hadn’t touched me. He was just playing a song. So why did I feel like this? He was handsome yes. But I was old enough and smart enough to know that nothing would ever come of us. We’d had that moment and that was it. It was over now.