Chapter 160

Allegra sighed as she wrenched open the side entrance to Rogers Centre.  Her flight had run late, meaning that it arrived right as sound check was starting and kept Richie from meeting her at the airport.  He did make arrangements to have a driver waiting, who hoisted her small bag into the trunk and jetted it to the venue as quickly as the standing traffic allowed. 

The faint strains of “I’ll Be There For You” filtered back through the honeycomb of backstage, evidence that the band was well into sound check.  She opted to wait for Richie in his dressing room rather than interrupt and trotted off in the most likely direction.

All these shows later, the backstage area wasn’t nearly as convoluted and intimidating as she’d once thought.  It was a different city, but the setup was always essentially the same, and she moved confidently through the corridors, nodding amiably to the faces of staffers who had become so familiar in the last few weeks.

Turning one last corner, she found Richie’s dressing room pretty well where she expected it to be.  With a hand on the doorknob, she paused, eyes flicking across the hallway to David and Tico’s backstage oasis.  Rather than commandeering Richie’s sofa for the nap she so desperately wanted, Allegra opted to go lie in wait for David. 

She pushed open the door and gave a cursory look around before she made herself at home in their dressing room.  Bypassing the arm chairs and sofa, she dragged a stool toward the practice keyboard David had standing by the side wall.  Balancing the balls of her feet on the low rungs of the stool, she flipped the power switch.  Without hesitation, she began lightly pounding out a few chords and limbering her fingers.

Lexi was flat-out avoiding her and she wanted to know why.

She and Dot had swung by the house in Colt’s Neck after yesterday’s shopping excursion, but Lexi was ‘apparently’ not home.  They also detoured by there on the way to the airport this morning, and still no answer at the door.  Every time Allegra called Lexi’s cell phone, it went to voicemail.  Same thing for Dot.

Curiouser and curiouser…

“I didn’t know you could play.”  David quietly slipped up behind her, winding his arms around for a lingering hug.  “Don’t stop,” he implored when her fingers stilled on the keys. 

Knowing how good he was, her insecurity had Allegra a breath away from ignoring his request.  But there was a particular chord progression she was having trouble pinning down.  Maybe he could help.

“Okay, but don’t judge me.  I’m not a professional musician.”  She resumed the melancholy tune, picking out the melody readily enough, but having trouble finding the chords that went beneath those notes.

“Do you recognize this song?” she asked over her shoulder.  “Can you tell me what I’m doing wrong?”

He moved to stand beside her, watching her fingers move nimbly up and down the keyboard until hitting a sour note.

“Up a third, then make it minor.”

Following his suggestion, she tossed him an appreciative smile when it fit perfectly.  She’d expected no less. 

And so it went for the next ten minutes or so.  Allegra played until she stumbled over a wrong note and David would gently offer corrective guidance until she could play the entire piece without pause.

Tinkling off a few notes of victory, she turned to her friend with a wide smile.  “Thank you!”

He draped his arm comfortably around her shoulders, brushing her cheek with a quick kiss.  “Anytime, beautiful.  You’re good, by the way – a lot better than Jon.”

“Yeah, well you can’t be an almost-nun and not play a little organ now and again.  I had to find some way to put all those piano lessons of my youth to good use.”

“I’d like for you to play with me sometime, but right now I’m curious.”  His curls bobbed as he nodded toward the instrument before them.  “What’s with the song?”

She hummed non-committally, developing an avid interest in the dressing room décor.  She slowly absorbed the black leather sofa, accompanying armchairs and glass-topped coffee table.

“Legs?”  David nudged her ribs, bewildered at why the in-your-face woman he knew so well was acting shy.  “What gives?”

Her attention still raptly engrossed in the floor rug, she mumbled something that he didn’t quite catch.  “What was that?  I couldn’t hear you.”

He watched her jaw lock itself in that stubborn set he’d seen more than once, and bit back a smile.  Her defiant gaze met his intrigued one with that sweetly familiar attitude of hers. 

“I want to do this song for Richie at the wedding.  Yes, I know that’s completely stupid,” she rushed on, not allowing him the opportunity to open his mouth, much less comment.  “Why would I try and do a song surrounded by a group of professional musicians – for a professional musician?  Ridiculous, right?”

She slipped her feet to the floor and stood, facing the bank of mirrors on the wall, unwilling to look at him.  David could see that her shoulders were set stiffly, awaiting his usual wise-ass repartee.

It wasn’t gonna happen.

He thought it was friggin’ adorable that she could feel any type of inferiority around this bunch.  For God’s sake, she was a sainted angel compared to the rest of them. 

So, for once, he went with sincerity instead of sarcasm.

Big palms came to cup her shoulders, and David could feel her heat warming his chest as he stood close behind.  “Definitely not ridiculous.  I hope that goofy fuck understands just how blessed he is.”  His grip tightened briefly before open palms slid down to her elbows and fell away.  “Tell me you’ve got the pipes to go with the mad piano skills.”

Her eyes met his in the mirror quizzically.  “You mean, can I sing?”

“Yeah, baby, can you sing?” he confirmed with a laugh and a cock-eyed grin.

“I do okay I guess.” 

“Well then…”  He steered her away from the keyboard and made a show of cracking his knuckles before slinging a leg over the stool.  “Allow me to accompany you, madam, and let’s hear it.”

She studied him skeptically as he worked through opening bars of the piece.  “You can’t be all ‘David’ about this.  You can tell me I’m lousy, but you’re not allowed to make fun.”  She pointed a finger directly at his nose.  “Promise me.”

“Aww, darlin’ you know I can’t promise that,” he teased, dark blue eyes sparkling with mischief.  “But I will try very hard to keep it at a minimum.  Come on Legs.  Dazzle me.”

The foundation of her voice was solid, even with her hesitancy in the first part of the verse.  Keeping his mind solely on the accompaniment, David allowed her to find her confidence, nodding encouragingly as she reached for the harder notes.  By the time she finished the last chorus, the original would have been proud of her delivery.

He spun on the stool, open hands dropping to his thighs.  “Dayum Legs!  You’re gonna have that sappy schmuck in tears.  Does he know you can belt it like that?”

Allegra shook her head, remembering the only time Richie heard her sing – that drunken night in Hawaii.  It was less than a stellar performance, even though he had said she could carry a tune.

“Well, he’s in for a helluva surprise then.  You gonna play, too?”

Again, she shook her head.  “I’m afraid I’ll be too nervous to even sing.  Playing is going to be out of the question.  I sort of had it in my mind that Jon would accompany me on guitar, since it would be a pain to drag a piano down to the beach in the middle of the night.”

“Let me play for you.  Doesn’t matter how much of a pain it is to get the keys on the sand.  Leave it to Uncle Dave.  I’ll take care of everything.”

“Are you sure you don’t mind?”

David splayed one open hand over his chest and sincerity shone brightly in his eyes when he assured her, “It would be a privilege.”

“In that case, you’re hired.”  Allegra’s smile lit the room.  “And while I’m asking favors…”

“Uh-oh.  What have I gotten myself into?”

She pushed lightly on his shoulder.  “Hey.  Be nice.  It’s not like I’m gonna ask for a kidney!  I just wanted to know if you would mind giving me away?”

“For real?”  His shaggy eyebrows pushed up under the fringe of curls blanketing his forehead.  “I figured Jon would do it.”

“I thought about that, but he’s going to be Richie’s best man.  Giving the bride away and being best man may give him a bigger head than usual.  I don’t want to be responsible for the ego that ate Honolulu,” she laughed.  “And in the interest of full-disclosure, I’m asking Tico to give me away too.  I’d like you both to be a part of the ceremony.”

“Well, I can’t speak for Tico, but I know I’d be honored.”

She stepped between his open legs, curling her arms around his neck, and he pulled her tight.  They lingered that way for a moment as the emotions threatened to overwhelm Allegra.  Once again, she cursed the circumstances, but was unbelievably grateful these men had become a part of her life.

“Get your fuckin’ hands off my woman,” a whiskey-rough voice growled.

Allegra’s heart picked up its pace.  She’d know that voice anywhere.  Lifting her head from David’s shoulder her pearly white teeth shone.  It had only been a day and a half, but she’d missed him.

“Possession is nine-tenths of the law,” David popped off, cinching his arms tighter and preventing Allegra from wiggling loose.

“You’re about to possess my boot in your ass.”

“Ahhh, good.”  He released her with a sigh, turning to face his friend.  “I’ve been waiting for the mate to the last one you put up there.  Now I’ll have a matched pair.”

There was no angry or smart-assed comeback from Richie.  There was no reply at all, because his mouth was otherwise engaged – kissing Allegra like it had been weeks instead of hours since they last saw one another.

“I thought you’d be in my dressing room,” he remarked when they surfaced for air.  “Did Lemma come and kidnap you?  Rat bastard.”

Allegra felt the contentment seep into her bones as she settled into his embrace.  It felt a whole lot like home.

“Actually, I was waiting for David specifically.  I need to talk to him about Lexi.”

“Oh yeah?”  David stopped picking at his curls in the mirror, regarding her over his shoulder.  “What about Lexi?”

“She’s avoiding me, and I’d like to know why.  Will you call her from your phone and let me talk to her?”

Both men bore inquisitive expressions. 

“Avoiding you?  Why would she do that?”

“Once you dial your phone, I’ll ask her.”

Fishing the device out of his pocket, David activated the touch screen and tapped it twice.  He lifted it to his ear, but Allegra frowned and held out her hand, palm up, fingers wiggling.

“Gimme,” she ordered.  “Otherwise she’ll find another reason to dodge me.”

It seemed bit farfetched, even in her own thoughts, but she couldn’t come up with any other explanation.  Seeing that David wasn’t going to relinquish the phone, she snatched it away just as he uttered his greeting.

“Hey, Lexi,” Allegra announced herself cheerily.  “I hated that we kept missing each other, so I asked David to give you a call.”

“Oh.  Uh, hi Allegra.  So you’re back in Canada already?”

“Yep.”  She flounced herself down on the piano stool as the men claimed the sofa to unabashedly listen to her end of the conversation.  “Listen, Lexi, I’m not much of a schmoozer, so I’m just going to come right out and ask.  Is there a problem between us that I’m not aware of?  Because I’ve been trying to get together with you for a couple of days now and…  Well, honestly, it seems like you’re avoiding me.  Are you?”

David and Richie shrugged at other in amazement, as though they didn’t know women could come right to the point about anything.  She rolled her eyes with an exasperated shake of her head.  Pointing toward the door, she mouthed for them to go to across the hall to Richie’s dressing room.

They both stubbornly refused to budge.

“Avoiding you?  Why would I do that?”  Her attempt at laughter was starkly artificial. 

I don’t know.  The same reason you’re avoiding the question?

“Funny, David asked the same thing.  I didn’t have an answer for him either.  Why would you do that?”

Lexi was silent for a moment, finally letting loose with a resonating sigh.  “Listen, Allegra, I’m sorry about Kristofer.  I feel awful about pushing you into using him when I know very well how… umm…  eccentric his grand plans are.  My own wedding is going to be a train wreck because of him.”

Now Allegra was really confused.  Once again she shooed the men.  Being as the conversation had lasted thirty seconds beyond their attention span, this time they shuffled off to do…  whatever it is they did before a show.

“If it’s not what you want, then why are you letting him plan it?” Allegra asked as soon as the door clicked shut.

“Because I owe him.  Big time.”

Jon had been right.  Kristofer had something on Lexi.

“Why?  Is Kristofer holding something over your head?”

“Oh…  it’s ancient history.  No point in bringing it up now.”

But you just said…

“Lexi, I understand that my friendship with David may have created a strain on the relationship you and I have, and I’m sorry about that, but I’d still like to be friends.”

“What do you mean, strain?  I don’t have any ill-feelings toward you Allegra.  Whatever misunderstanding there was is long since over.”

A wave of relief washed over Allegra.  She and Lexi may never be ‘besties’, but she certainly hadn’t wanted any bad blood brewing between them.

“That’s such a relief.  I’ve worried about that for weeks now.  So if that isn’t a problem, then please tell me what the story with Kristofer is.”

 “Are you sure you want to hear this?  It’s totally meaningless to anyone but me, I’m afraid.”

“You’ve got me wondering, so yeah, I’d like to hear it.”

“Kristofer and I were pretty close friends in college,” Lexi began.  “We never dated, because…  Well, he’s obviously gay, right?”

“Obviously.”

“I always thought it was apparent to the world.  Not that I minded,” she was quick to clarify.  “It was just a part of who he was, and I was fine with it.  Anyway, during our last year of school, my parents ended up going overseas during Thanksgiving break and I was at loose ends.  Kristofer was nice enough to invite me over to stay with him and his family during the holiday.”

Kristofer nice?  Allegra didn’t have time to wrap her brain around that oxymoron before Lexi forged ahead.

“We’re sitting there at dinner, his parents making subtle comments about his dating life, or lack thereof.  They told me how happy they were to have me, and that I was the first woman their ‘little boy’ had ever brought home to meet the parents.  Well, I laughed, liked it was the biggest joke ever and tossed off, ‘Yeah, but how many boys has he brought home?’”

Allegra drew in a sharp breath and winced.

“You pick up more quickly than I did,” Lexi said with a sardonic drawl.  “His parents gave me this innocent look and asked ‘Why whatever do you mean, dear?’.  Of course, I,  assuming Kristofer’s sexual preference was blatantly obvious to everyone – including his parents  - said, ‘You know, because he’s gay.’  Turns out Mommy and Daddy had no idea.  I out-ed the man to his parents at Thanksgiving dinner.”

“Ohhhh, Lexi…” Allegra murmured sympathetically.

“Yeah.  So here I am twenty-some odd years later trying to ease my conscience by supporting his doomed event planning business.  And in those twenty-some odd years, he’s become a bitter little prick with lousy fashion sense.”

A snort of laughter escaped before Allegra could stop herself. 

“Hilarious, isn’t it?  And what do I have to show for it?  He’s still bitter, shows no signs of forgiveness and is planning my wedding around Broadway show tunes.”

“Um… Well, that could be a cool idea, considering David’s occupation.”

“If it was done properly, maybe.  But seriously?  The man wants the Rockettes doing high kicks over the aisle as I walk down it.  Tell me what that has to do with Broadway, Allegra.  Even better, tell me who wants to walk toward their future through the legs of twenty-five women.  David calls it the Arch of Crotch.”

That was it.  She couldn’t contain her laughter anymore. Tears rolled down her face, and a stitch pierced her side at the mental image.

“Hysterical, isn’t it?  All I wanted was a simple wedding at a friend’s house.  Not even a big, fancy cake.  Just some cupcakes, close friends and family, with David and his buddies jamming on stage for the reception.  That’s it.”

“Then do it,” Allegra encouraged, wiping a stray tear from her cheek, trying to sober herself enough to be of help.  “Lexi, you’ve bent over backward to help his business and he’s still a bitter little … man.  You can’t change that any more than you can change what happened.  You’ve done all you can and it’s time to make peace with yourself.  Don’t ruin your wedding out of guilt.”

“Maybe you’re right.  It scares me to death that David will forever after refer to our wedding day as Crotch Day.”

“It's a valid fear.  You could also celebrate your Crotchiversary every year.”

“That could so happen,” Lexi groaned hopelessly.