Chapter Six

Doc spun around at her, his eyes burning with fire. “You! You told him to do this?” he accused.

“God no! I didn’t – I would of never—“ they were cut off by the DJ continuing to speak.

“You are? Well congratulations man, I didn’t think you were seeing anyone all this time?”

Callie and Doc both watched Jon lean back and grin. He flicked the hair back from his head and rubbed his chin with his fingers.

“Yup – we’ve known each other awhile. She’s just been standing back while my career has just started. Obviously deciding to get married was a very last minute thing but there are no regrets. From both of us.” He looked straight for her. Callie knew he was trying to do the right thing in a very wrong situation. But hell? Now what? It was good and fine telling the world they were married but they weren’t, how in the blue blazes would this ever work?

Richie nearly gagged, “well little lady, looks like you really are part of the family—welcome.” Richie scooped her in close in a bear hug.

She was shaking, processing what the hell just happened here and what he was playing at? They never had discussed this and already she was trying to make sense on how those words would play out to actions. They couldn’t live together? He was on tour; well she assumed that’s what he was doing. She had no idea. She shook her head. Was she now expected to make his dinner? How did he take his coffee?

I have no idea who my husband is. How ridiculous is that?

How was this ever going to affect her career? She turned to face the dark beady eyes of Doc staring right through her.

“I don’t know what you said to him. But you will be telling him to fix this, he can’t be married – it’s just not on.” He rolled his hand into a fist and rested it against the glass as Jon continued to speak about the band and the upcoming tour dates.

Callie didn’t like this man one bit, but she tried to compose herself. “Why do you automatically assume this was my idea? As previously stated marrying a rock star is not what I had in plans for my career so don’t turn this around on me” she snapped. She whirled around at Richie.

“Can’t you get in there and drag him out or something?”

Her heart was racing and her head was spinning, she actually thought she might faint. What was her father going to say? God, her firm? And he had to say they were together? How in the freakin hell would she explain this to people?

Richie laughed shaking his head. “This oughta be good.” He tipped his head towards the studio where the DJ had hit play on the song. Jon stood up and pulled the headphones off his head and headed towards the door of the booth.

His hair was all crushed down from being under the headset but right now, she didn’t care. She was too damn mad at him.

The door swung open and Doc launched himself in front of Callie. She took a step back annoyed the short stocked man had bet her to it.

“What in the hell was that Jonny?”

He wrapped his arm around Doc’s shoulders. “Relax old man, we’ll still sell the records. You’ll see.” His eyes traveled across the room until they met hers.
God damn him.

She didn’t get a chance to speak again due to Doc. “This is not acceptable Jon, you cannot be married just like this – remember what I said right from the start. It’s all about availability and you being married screws the whole damn system up!”
Jon pulled back from Doc and looked him in the eye. “Sometimes it’s not about the system.”

The DJ waved Doc into the studio so he walked away from Jon but turned back before he opened the door pointing a short finger at him and her. “This is not over, not over by a long shot.”

Richie patted Jon on his shoulder and took his exit just as quickly leaving just her and Jon.

Neither of them said a word at first, the silence was deafening. When he jammed his hands into his pocket and went to open his mouth she cut him off.

“What in god’s name was that?” she asked, she tried to keep calm but her arms just wouldn’t co-operate shaking as she spoke.

“I took control of the situation, for the both of us. Just until it blows over – right now if we get a divorce it will just be over the news constantly and like you said it doesn’t make you look good.” He walked towards her cautiously and his arm reached out for her but she battered it away.

“Don’t you even dare put this back on to me. Nothing is good for me, no matter how we look at it. And what about your career?” She nodded into the studio booth. “He seems pretty pissed about this. What if he’s right and this stops your career just because you can’t jump into bed with all those big busted girls huh?”

His jaw tightened as he followed her gaze to Doc. “He doesn’t get to make all the calls. We’ll sell the records. Don’t you worry about that. I’ll make sure of it to prove his point.”

“It’s not typical rock star behaviour being married at this age Jon… even I can see that.”

He finally reached her and took her hands in his. “I’m not typical. And that’s exactly the point. Don’t you want to take control of your life, not what you parents want or thinks is best for you? I know it’s not exactly the way I ever planned to do that myself, but we can make it work. Even if it’s just for a little while.” He squeezed her hands, and the small grin melted her anger away.

“How is this ever going to work Jon? This is absurd. What about all the girls? I mean come on, you can’t tell me you aren’t going to enjoy your lifestyle for the next two years?”

He chuckled. “Well no, I guess not but I will be discrete. And I’m going to be touring so much, we’ll be apart mostly right, so it will be easy. Just on the big things I am invited to you’ll have to come along…as my date since you are my wife.”

Her hand clutched her belly. “I feel sick.” What he was proposing was short of absurd. She walked backwards until her the back of her knees hit the chair. Jon helped her sit down. She couldn’t look at him, she couldn’t look at the man she was supposed to now pretend was her husband.

“That’s fine for you to be discrete but what about me? I don’t exactly get to go and date in secret, do I?” Not that it was an issue of late as her work pretty much tied her up but that wasn’t the point.

His hand rested on her shoulder. “Callie, we’d work it out. I promise. We just have to be good actors about it and soon honestly they won’t care what we’re doing… so it will all go away.”

She sighed. Her father would hit the roof. But he had anyway so what difference would this make. A small part of her wanted to see his face when she told him, as Jon was definitely not son in law material. Chelsea had married a wealthy banker and Daryl was married to Julia who had come from respectable old money. Both marriages had the Pierce Richard’s stamp of approval.

This one would never.

She liked being different. God knows, she’d tried her whole life till now to be different from the expectations of the family and still be successful and failed. They’d always had control in the end. Until now.

“What about the band Jon? It’s ok to say Doc didn’t care but what will the rest of the guys think?”

He shrugged, “they’ll be cool. It won’t change what we’re doing Callie. You’ll see.”
She finally met his eyes. “Alright, I don’t know how we will ever do this but I guess it’s worth a shot.” She couldn’t believe that the words came out of her mouth so easily.

He broke into a wide grin, “see I knew you’d see it my way.”

She folded her arms and leaned back taking him all in. Was she crazy? Probably.

Would this be a mistake? More than likely.

Was he growing on her? …the jury was still out on that one.

“This still doesn’t mean I like you though.”

He snorted and bumped his shoulder into hers. “Of course not.”