Chapter Forty-Three

Jon smiled as the crash of bowling ball met pins. He turned around and shot his fists into the air. “I do believe that was a strike gentleman.” He dusted off his hands and skipped back to his chair, snagging his beer for a quick pull.

Richie snorted, “don’t get to cocky now son. You haven’t seen the power of Sambora.” He flashed a grin so broad Jon laughed as he stood up and stretched his tall frame.

“Yeah, I so don’t wanna see any power you have bro.” Jon pulled up his knees to his chest, this is what he had needed. Doc had been right, a day away with the boys just to be boys without the rest of the drama. He glanced over his shoulder and could make out Doc in deep conversation with a couple of people he didn’t recognise. “Who do you suppose they are?"

He nodded towards the corner as he took Tico’s cigarette off him.

Tico shrugged, “I don’t know. Do we care as long as we get paid?”

Jon snorted, and took a deep suck. “Suppose not, but I still don’t trust him.” Doc had been better in the last few months, but there was still something that hung over him that Jon didn’t particularly like. And the fact was, he was too busy being mobbed to be able to do much more than to take what Doc gave them.

He raked his hand through his hair and blew out the smoke, he hadn’t thought about Caliie for awhile now. And fuck if he missed her, he missed throwing her off her little steady manner. He smiled remembering how just a kiss, could do that. He’d fucked up, and he’d not told anyone, not even Richie, that it was the one thing he regretted more than anything.

He’d broken her heart.

The first few months had been easy, he’d slept, drunk and lived a normal joe-blogg life only to get it taken away again. They’d recorded the album up in Vancouver, and then released and burst into International Stardom over night. Well, it seemed that way with how fucking fast it all went by.

He’d thought about calling her, and there was the matter of the divorce that Doc had been keen to make go away, and have his “star” be a free man again. Doc had pulled in a favor with a lawyer friend, and he’d made it go away, with the simplicity of signing a few forms. It was an amicable split no settlements, nothing. Callie had more than he ever did in worldy goods anyway.It wasn’t legal whatever happened to make this happen, Jon knew that but he had to let her go anyway he could. It was the least he could do.

“You know Jonny, you should call her.” Tico stood up and plucked a ball from the rack.

Christ, had he heard him? “Call who Teek?”

Tico laughed, “I’m not stupid Jonny.”

Tico’s ball rocketed down the aisle, smashing through the pins at the end. No, he wasn’t stupid. Tico was the silent one, the sponge that seemed to absorb everything, even when you thought he wasn't listening, he was. He couldn’t call Callie now, she’d have moved on.

What if she hadn’t? What if she was still at the mercy of that damn father of hers?

He rubbed the back of his neck as Tico came back dusting his hands. “You miss her don’t you?” He slid into the chair and popped the lid off another beer.

Jon ignored the pang in his chest and looked away, “it was for the best. For her, and for me.” The more he kept saying it, maybe he’d believe it.

Tico chuckled, “maybe it was. But maybe she needed you, like you need her.”

Jon frowned, “I don’t need her. I’m perfectly fine without her aren’t I? I’m here, I’m not crying in my cereal about her.” He scoffed and sprung himself up off the chair as his turn came up. He didn’t need anyone, now then and not now. He threw the ball down the aisle, and cursed as the ball skidding down into the gutter.

Richie slapped him on the back, “losing that golden touch bro?”

“Fuck.” He sank back into the chair and growled, Tico was still staring at him with a questionable brow. “Shut up.”

“Jonny, nothing wrong with needing someone that’s not in your circle, she’s a steady head and you need that away from all this.”

She was his steady head too, and he damned fucked that right up didn’t he? He missed her, there he said it, even if it was just to himself. He said it. He missed her laugh, he missed the way he could talk his head off and she’d stroke the back of his neck as he did, and just listen. He missed her scent, even now, wild summer nights still reminded him of her scent.

“I can’t go back Teek. I hurt her, way too much. We were just too different.”

That’s what had fit, and he knew it. The fact that they came both from different situations kept them both honest with each other. How could he not have seen that then? How could he not have fought for that, at the time? All he had left of her, was her tear stained face that tugged his heart each time he remembered, instead of those nights where her wild hair tumbled around her breasts, and her blue eyes sparkled like diamonds.

The angry shouts from where Doc was, snapped him back to reality. Two of the guys, had hauled Doc up against the wall.

“Dude, what the fuck?” Jon leapt out, followed closely by Richie and ran across the room.

“What’s going on?”

Doc winced as they held him against up against the wall, by the collar of his Hawaiian shirt.

“Jonny, its ok – go back and keep playin, we’ve got it under control here. Haven’t we boys?”

Jon frowned, “what’s going on. Let go of him!” He shoved at the big guy, built like a fridge.

“Back off, we just need our money and we’ll let your little weasel friend go.”

“Jon – just go, you don’t need to worr—“

The one, holding Doc snarled, “Listen to him pretty boy. Just back away and we’ll get what we want and leave you all alone.”

“Fuck off, how much does he owe you?”

“Jon, please just go back and-“

“How much?”

His neck was on fire, as the rage crept up his skin. What the hell was he doing now?

“Five hundred.” The guy, now blocking his view folded his arms and nodded.

“Fine, take this, it’s worth that much.” He popped off his wrist watch, the one his parents gave him when Shot through the heart hit number one.

“Jonny, you don’t need to do this.”

He thrusted it into the guy’s hands. “Take it and leave us the hell alone.”

Doc slumped to the ground as he was released, and the two guys left without so much of a word. Jon didn’t help him up, instead he just stood there with Richie and waited for Doc himself to.

“What the fuck was that about? Are you gambling, or doing something stupid?”

“Jon, maybe we should talk when we get back to the hotel...” Richie whispered. Fuck that, he needed to know now why the hell his manager was being hauled up for cash, by two guys that looked like they belonged in West Side Story.

Doc straightened himself up. “No, I’m not gambling. I just owed them some money, I had to pay some advances for the band.” He flicked his cuffs up. “So I went to some loan sharks, that required nothing more than your word.”

Jon cringed, “I thought we had enough money to get by now, we’re starting to get money in from the record Doc. And why didn’t you fucking tell me?”

“I didn’t want to worry you. Thank you for bailing me out. It won’t happen again.”

Jon chewed the inside of his cheek, something wasn’t adding up here. They had money, he knew they had more than five hundred dollars available in cash if they needed it.
“I want to see the books.”

Doc’s eyes widened, “of course. I’ll get them together when we get back to the hotel.” He quickly excused himself, which left Richie and himself standing there alone.

“You don’t believe him?”

Jon shook his head, “I dunno Rich. I honestly don’t. I’m damned going to keep an eye on our money though. Last thing I want is the fucking band being affiliated with gang members for money.” God, after everything he’d done to get this band where it was now. He couldn’t afford the reputation.

“But Doc, wouldn’t be so stupid, would he Jonny?”

“I’d hope not Rich. I wish Callie was here, she’d be able to see anything dodgy in the books.”

Richie cocked his brow. “Wow, you said her name.”

He hadn’t even realised he had either, dammit. But it was the truth. She was a lot smarter than he was when it came to this. “Well, she’s smart.” Beautiful, funny, a little uptight and - fuck it.

“So call her.”

“I’m not calling her. I’m the last person she needs right now. I kicked her in the guts Richie.”

He held his hands up, “whoa another revelation. No shit Jonny, so go and fix it.”

No, he couldn’t. It was over, he’d said his piece and it had been ten months since he saw her. She was probably dating a young hot shot doctor, or lawyer by now. All he did was turn her world upside down, and turned his inside out. They were better apart.

It is what it was.

“Alright, but how do you know she isn’t just as fucking miserable as you are?”

Jon snorted, “I’m not crying in my beer Rich. And I’m sure she’s not either.”

“She loved you.”

He swallowed the forming lump in his throat. “Yeah, well. I loved her. Come on, let’s go bowl.” He didn’t let Richie speak anymore reason, he couldn’t take it. He hated when Richie was right, it still didn’t change anything. But he was right.

He pointed to Doc. “I want those books when we get back.” Doc nodded, and didn't meet his eyes.

It was time to take control. No fucking way was he letting whatever the hell his manager was doing, suck the rest of them down with him.

No fucking way in hell.