Storms by Carol Ann Harris Read Free Book Online Page B

crush him. My heart ached for him. I swore to myself that I would do everything within my power to help him through whatever might lie ahead for him—and us.
    Rumours
was due to be released in a month’s time. If the radio airplay was any indication, then the album could be very, very successful. But as every artist knows, even when you have a huge album, you have to prove yourself on stage, again and again. The bigger the band, the more the public expects and wants. Maybe for some musicians, having an amazing record and a so-so live show was good enough—but it wasn’t good enough for Fleetwood Mac. They wanted to have it all: the best record of the year
and
the best show. Anything less would be failure. And Lindsey wasn’t a man to accept failure—either from himself or anyone else in the band.
    I pulled Lindsey into my arms, feeling fear for us both. As I stroked his hair and lulled him back to sleep, I knew it was I, not Lindsey, who was going to be sleepless for the rest of the night. Rehearsals were beginning. I now knew that it wasn’t going to be a party—it was going to be hard workfor Lindsey and tension for us all. I realized that not only did I have Lindsey to bolster, but also I would, for the first time, be spending a lot of “quality time” with Stevie Nicks. She had avoided me at the celebration dinner, but she had to go to rehearsals—as did I. Lindsey and I were determined that nothing could keep us from spending our evenings together—not even an upcoming world tour. Since his attendance was mandatory at rehearsals, so was mine.
    This, of course, would be a very intense situation for me. I was very aware that so far, Stevie had done little to make me feel welcome. I didn’t blame her. I wouldn’t be keen on having the new girlfriend of my ex-lover hanging around either. There was nothing for it, however. She and I would have to find a middle ground where we both could live with each other. And it would start at rehearsals. Lindsey was quickly becoming the most important person in my life, and I had no intention of going anywhere.
    The band had already had some raw rehearsals in a small studio in the San Fernando Valley called, of all things, Rat. Beginning the next evening, the real rehearsals for the
Rumours
tour would be held on a large soundstage at the famed SIR Studios on Sunset Boulevard. Lindsey gave me specific directions before I left him in the morning and made me promise to be there as soon as I could after work. I looked at his pale face and tangled brown curls and told him that nothing could keep me away. He smiled and kissed me gently before I went out the front door into another day of drizzling rain.
    I spent the whole day just going through the motions at Producer’s Workshop. I kept thinking of Lindsey and his midnight confession of anxiety about the upcoming tour. Would I be strong enough, smart enough, to help him cope? I had to be. He needed me. No matter how hard it might be for me, I was going to be there for him, I vowed to myself. I counted the minutes until I could see him again.
    As soon as the clock struck six, I dashed out of Producer’s Workshop, trying desperately to keep my hair from becoming wet in the ever-present drizzle, and jumped into my car for a mad shopping spree at Century City shopping center. This would be the first night I’d spend any length of time around Lindsey’s ex-girlfriend, Stevie Nicks. And as every woman knows, a dress and a new pair of shoes can become a suit of armor when facing such a challenge. Let’s face it, walking into Fleetwood Mac’s first big rehearsalfor their tour would be a huge deal for anyone. Walking in as the new girlfriend of the guitar player whose ex is a rock ‘n’ roll goddess and one of the lead singers in his band would constitute a challenge for any female in the world.
    Running into Country Club Fashions, I grabbed a sexy little black dress