Twenty-Three

The ringing of the phone drew Allegra’s head out from under the covers.  It was entirely too early to be getting phone calls.  David wasn’t lying when he said you could get lost in You Tube for hours.  Between that and googling Seattle tourist attractions, she didn’t go to sleep until about 3 am.  Even then, it was with the computer in her lap.

With a glance at the clock, she wondered who it could be at seven in the morning.  A flick of her thumb connected the call.  “’Lo?” 

“Sorry to wake you,” Jon’s crisp voice came over the line.  “But I forgot to tell you that I found out where the payroll problem was.  Apparently you don’t have direct deposit and they mailed a check back to Jersey for some damn reason.  Call Cheryl today with your bank information and she’ll get it fixed.”

Allegra struggled to sit up, pushing her hair away from her face.   He may as well have been speaking Swahili.  He couldn’t seriously expect her to be able to process what he’d just said.   “Slow down and give me a minute to wake up before you start rattling all that stuff off at me.”  She ran her hand over the side of her face and willed her mind to think.  “Now, huh?”

He repeated himself, and she understood the words this time.  “Jon, I don’t have a bank account.”

Silence answered her statement. 

“Hello?” she asked, wondering if the call had dropped.

“Yeah, I heard you.  I’ll figure something else out and hook up with you after I finish at the gym.  You really need a bank account now, you know.”  Not expecting an answer, he went on.  “What are your plans for today?”

Now that he’d moved past anything she needed to focus on, Allegra buried herself back under the covers.  “Umm… sleep a few more hours and then go sightseeing.” 

“Who’s going with you?” 

“I thought I’d just wander around on my own.”

“That’s not a good idea.  Somebody will go with you.  I’ll let you know who when I stop by.”

She groaned.  “It’s too early in the morning to fight.  Goodbye, Jon.”  And with that, she disconnected the call and went back to sleep.

♫  ♫   ♫   ♫   ♫

She had finished her shower and was dressed by the time the knock came at the door.  Allegra had no more pulled it open  when Jon came waltzing in, giving her what appeared to be a credit card as he passed by.

“What’s this?”  She inspected the card in her hand.

“Prepaid Visa.  I had your check voided and put all the money on there.  Please get a bank account.”

A bank account had been on her list of things to do as soon as she had any money to put in it.  For that reason alone, she decided to limit her answer to a nod.  “How much is here?”

“Two grand.”  He sat down on the sofa, kicking his feet up on the table.

Hands balled into fists were planted on her hips.  “What?!  That’s way too much money.  I didn’t earn that.”

“Don’t start with me.”  When she opened her mouth to argue, he told her, “You’ve been compensated at a fair rate for the days you worked, and the rest is hazard pay for putting up with my shit.”  He dropped his booted feet to the floor, pulling out his phone and firing off a text message to someone.

“You know you’re an overbearing, arrogant SOB with a God complex, right?”

Looking up at her with a raised eyebrow, he said, “I’ve heard it a time or two, yeah.”

“Well, as long as we’re on the same page.”  She picked up her purse to get her wallet.  “Thanks.”

His phone disappeared back into his pocket. “You’re welcome.  Now, Rich will meet you downstairs in about half an hour.  Bundle up.   After Hawaii, it feels colder than a bitch out there.”

That was it.  She’d held her tongue all she could.  “Wait just a damn minute.  First of all, I want you to admit that I could’ve had three separate arguments with you already this morning, but instead chose to take the high road.”

“After the way you went off on me yesterday, you should.”  He pointed his finger at her.  “And yesterday is why I don’t want you alone.  We dealt with Felix, and I know he’s more than pissed about the whole thing.  What I don’t know is if he’s still hanging around Seattle.    Please don’t hand this piece of fuck the opportunity to make a point, Allegra.  If you’re going out, don’t go alone.  Your safety is more important than your damned independent streak.”

Well if that doesn’t just make me feel like a naughty child having her hand smacked…

Just because he had a valid point, didn’t mean she had to acknowledge it.  “So how did Richie draw the short straw?”

Jon stood and moved toward the door.  “He didn’t.  I called and asked him to round up some of the guys to play tour guide.   It’s hard telling who all will show up.  If I didn’t have meetings, I’d go myself.”  He bussed her cheek.  “Be careful and have fun.”

With that, the Darting Dictator blew back out the door.

♫  ♫   ♫   ♫   ♫

The day proved to be interesting.

It was a little awkward for Allegra at first, when she found Richie, Tico and David all waiting in the lobby .  After the way David had left last night, and her little Richie fantasy, she wasn’t sure how to act with them.  She didn’t even really know how to greet them.  Hugs?  No, probably not.  David didn’t seem to even want to meet her eyes just yet, and she was afraid to touch Richie.

Tico, however, was still Tico, so she hugged him, whispering in his ear, “Are you here to babysit the babysitters?”

He grinned conspiratorially and treated her to one of his deep chuckles.  “Something like that.”

“Hey!  Why do I feel like we’ve just been slandered?”  David demanded.  Maybe she’d imagined the awkwardness last night and just now?

“What’s this ‘we’ stuff Kemosabe?”  Richie threw out before anyone else could say anything.  “I’m sure they were bemoaning your company and feeling sorry for me in the process.”

“Okay, kids,”  Tico interrupted, winking at Allegra.  “Lemma and I have a tee time this afternoon.  Let’s get this show on the road.”

She smirked, feeling comfortable with the men once again, and followed her keepers onto the streets of Seattle.

And so the day went.  At her request, they visited the Space Needle, Pike’s Place Market, the original Starbuck’s and took a ferry ride out into the Sound.   The guys added a visit to the Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum to the agenda as their two cents.

All the while, Richie and Dave bickered like two little children, Tico occasionally refereed and Allegra just laughed.  The forced company, that she thought would make her feel caged, lifted her spirits higher than they had been in weeks. 

At Pike’s Place Market, she watched in fascination as the fishmongers flung their wares.  David even did a fair imitation of a dead fish, with lips sucked in and eyes popped out.  The illusion was shattered, however, when he ran at Richie screaming, “Catch me!” 

That was one of the times that Tico had to referee.

It seemed like no time before she found herself alone with Richie, the other two men having gone to play golf. 

“You don’t play golf?” Allegra asked him.

“Once in a while, but I’m not a fanatic like they are.”

“Oh.”  The time was now mid-afternoon and her stomach was complaining loudly about its lack of food, but she didn’t want to take up any more of Richie’s time.  “We can head back to the hotel if you want.  You’ve already put in enough community service hours with me today.”

He gave her a speculative look.  Was that a subtle reference to his DUI?  Not wanting to open that particular can of worms, he only said, “I haven’t eaten anything.  Do you want to grab a bite with me?”

“Sounds great!” she agreed, with that beautiful, carefree smile he’d become familiar with throughout the day.

There was a small café just down the block that both thought looked promising.  Upon entering, Richie escorted her to the table and seated himself across from her.    As she settled herself, he watched, unable to remember the last time he’d been so relaxed.  Playing tour guide had been surprisingly fun, and he’d enjoyed the non-combative side of her personality, seeing  the wonder and joy in her face as she experienced the sights for the first time.  It was nice to know she didn’t always have to be so prickly.  “Did you enjoy your sightseeing?  Is there anything else you wanted to do?”

She picked up the menu and pretended to consider his question.  There was something else she thought she wanted to do, but she wasn’t sure.  Maybe if she talked to him about it…

“There couldn’t have been any better tour guides, so I enjoyed myself very much, thank you.  If I hadn’t gone anywhere or seen anything, you all were entertainment enough.” 

After they placed their orders for salads and sandwiches, Allegra fussed with her iced tea, adding sweetener and stirring until the clinking noise became annoying.  Richie had been an excellent companion today, but it felt different now that they were alone.   The memory of her shower last night had her engrossed in watching his hands as he added cream to the coffee in front of him.  He had removed his black, military-style jacket when they arrived, and was now wearing only a maroon t-shirt with the words White Trash Beautiful ornately emblazoned on it.  Her eyes crept up his bare arms, stopping at the hint of tattoo peeking from his sleeve.

“Richie, will you tell me about your tattoo?”  She’d had it on her mind since their last sunrise together.

“Sure.  What do you want to know?”

“Well, you have a cross tattoo.”  She indicated his left arm, with a nod.

Pushing up his sleeve to reveal the artwork in question, he looked at it and said, “I do.”

“You have a cross tattoo with the words God and Faith.”

“I do.”

“How does that work?”

He wasn’t exactly clear on what she wanted to know. “Getting inked?” 

“No.”  Allegra started to shake her head, and then relented.  “Well, yes, but that can wait.  I was talking about reconciling God, Faith, the Cross and living this kind of life.”

Confusion clouded his eyes.  “I don’t understand.”  He folded his arms on the edge of the table and leaned forward, giving her his full attention.

The droplets of condensation on her glass ran downward and she caught them with her fingertip as she composed her words.  “When you were singing on the beach the other morning, some of the lyrics were about praying to Jesus.  That, the tattoo and the cross jewelry you wear make me think you have active religious views, but I also think your lifestyle and religion don’t exactly go hand-in-hand.”  She looked up at him with a half-smile.  “Sex, Drugs and Rock-n-Roll aren’t exactly synonymous with the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.”

A smile claimed his mouth, and he nodded in agreement.  “That’s true, but we don’t live the stereotypical lifestyle of a rock band.  You should know that by now.”  He shrugged, splaying his palms upward.  “Now, I won’t say we’re grown up, but we are mature men with families.  So we’re past all that hedonism – for the most part.” 

She wondered if he was referring to his nightly encounters with the likes of women resembling Miss Shiny Pink Tube Top.   “So it’s a new tattoo, then?”

“I can already see where this is going.”  Richie straightened in his seat, prepared to take the judgment that was bound to be coming.  “No, I’ve had it forever.   But even when we did party like rockstars, the fact that I chose to live my life to the fullest didn’t and doesn’t diminish my faith.”

The thoughts in her eyes were undecipherable, but he had no qualms about what he was saying.

“If I can’t believe that somebody out there is in charge and wants the best for all humanity – then what’s the point?  I don’t claim to be traditional in my views, but they’re my views,” he laid his open palm over his breastbone, “and I happen to believe in them wholeheartedly.”

Respect welled up inside her.  Real Richie was in the house.  “And that’s okay for you?  Not having a rulebook to follow?” 

He shrugged.  “I like to think that I’m pretty in tune with the world around me.  I trust my heart and my conscience to tell me what’s right and do my best not to hurt anyone along the way.”

She took in his face and read the sincerity there.  On the surface, her question had been about a tattoo, but what she really wanted to know was how to get her faith back.  His comments provided an interesting insight into her dilemma.  Maybe he was onto something. 

Nodding toward his other arm, she said, “I know you have a guitar on that one.  What are the words at the bottom?”

“Who dares wins.”

“Is that your motivational mantra?”

“Not all positive motivation, but yeah, it gives me a kick in the ass when I need it.  On the flip side, it gives me permission to do stupid shit too.  Learning the difference can be a bitch.”  He gave a self-deprecating chuckle.    

“What kind of stupid stuff? “

He looked at her for some sign of smugness or pity, and saw only curiosity. 

Allegra interpreted his silence as a desire not to respond.  “I’m sorry for prying.  It’s none of my business.”

Richie laughed out loud.  “Sunshine, the free world thinks it’s their business.  Feels like thousands of people know every time I take a leak.   You not knowing my entire biography is a pleasant surprise.  Have you read anything at all about the band members?” 

“I’ve never been much into celebrity news, so to me, you’re just my cousin’s friends.   I don’t know anything you haven’t told me.”  She gave him a sheepish grin.  “Well, that’s not entirely true.  I watched a whole lot of videos last night on You Tube.  No interviews, just performances.  Let’s say that I’m well versed in your stage presence throughout the years.”

He laughed along with her and they discussed the band’s style changes throughout the years, eventually getting around to his new fashion label.  Their meals came, and they continued to chat companionably as they ate, time passing by more quickly than they realized. 

So quickly, in fact, that Allegra was surprised when the waitress brought them their bill.  She reached for it and her wallet simultaneously, pulling out the Visa Jon had given her that morning. 

“I know you don’t think you’re buying my lunch,”  Richie said, his hand held out for the check.

“Actually, I know I am,”  she told him, pulling the paper as far away from him as she could.  “It’s the least I can do after you’ve wasted your entire day babysitting me.  And since I have one last favor to ask.”

“Do tell?”  he asked, leaning back in his chair.  The waitress came by just then and he slid her his AmEx before she could reach the other side of the table. 

Allegra just put the Visa back in her purse, and let it go.  He certainly had more money than she did.  It wouldn’t hurt to let him buy a sandwich.

“I’m waiting,” he reminded her, with a smirk.

“Don’t gloat.  It’s very unattractive.”  She pulled some lip balm out of her still open bag and coated her lips with it.  Closing the tube, she took a deep breath and put her request out there.  “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and I want a tattoo.  Will you go with me?”

“You sure about this?”  He hoped to God Jon wouldn’t go apeshit over a tattoo.  She was safe.  That’s all the mattered, right?  And he may never know, Richie realized, depending on where said tattoo was located.

She nodded resolutely.  “Yes.  I just need somebody to hold my hand in case it hurts.”

Richie stood and, with manners his ma would be proud of, held her chair for her.  “Well then Sunshine, let’s go get you some ink.”