Read Online Front Man by Adora Bell - Free Book Online Page A

One day, she promised
herself, she would have him for real.
    Five years later, and
at least part of Sara's dream was about to come true. Erica had
entered a phone-in competition with their local radio station, and
against the odds, been the lucky tenth caller. The prize was two
backstage passes to see Compass at City Stadium. It was the final
stop on the North American tour, before the boys headed to Europe.
The girls had been beside themselves with excitement for the past
couple of months. They had slept in line for festival tickets, paid
extortionate amounts on internet auction sites and lingered outside
stage doors into the early hours, all in the hopes of getting close
to their heroes. But the closest they had got was when Erica touched
the bass player's hand from the front row of their charity gig in
Boston. Tonight, they would finally be backstage, mingling with the
stars. Sara had played over what she would say to Jack so many times
in her mind, but she still couldn't decide on the best approach. She
didn't want to seem too forward, like just another slutty groupie,
but she was scared of seeming like a shy idiot...or clamming up
completely. Just be yourself, she repeated to herself like a mantra,
as she stared through the window of Erica's beaten up Honda. Rain
drops clattered against the wind-shield ,
but the crummy weather couldn't dampen the girls' spirits. They
turned the new Compass album up as high as the cheap stereo would
allow, and sang along to every word at full volume.

    ***

    “Jack, are you in there? Open the
hell up!”
    Jack stayed slumped
in his chair, head in hands, breathing slowly in and out. If he could
only get rid of this nauseous feeling, everything would be okay. But
Jared was the last person he wanted to see at that moment; his
manager's attempts to calm him down only every made him more nervous.
    “Well you
better not have a girl in there, cos I'm coming in!”
    Jack sighed inwardly
as Jared bounced through the door clutching a sheaf of paper. Despite
being in his early fifties, Compass' manager seemed to have boundless
energy, and expected the same from the band. No matter how worn out
they felt, Jared was always behind them, pushing them forward,
forcing a good performance out of them. Jack knew they couldn't have
succeeded without him, but sometimes he wished he would just take a
holiday.
    “What's up
Jared?” he grunted.
    “Still feeling
sick?” His manager asked, taking in the front man's pale face
and grumpy expression, “you've got to learn to deal with these
nerves man, I hate seeing you like this.”
    “I'll be fine
once I get on stage, you know that.”
    “You'll be
better than fine, Carter, you'll be a fucking rock star. Like always,
right buddy?” Jared slapped Jack hard on the back, and he
willed himself not to throw up. He was always a wreck before gigs. He
had thought it would get better once Compass hit the big time, but as
the crowds and the venues grew, so did the intensity of these nervous
attacks. Nothing seemed to help; alcohol just made him vomit, drugs
just amplified the feeling. Besides, Jack didn't want to become
dependant on those things to perform. He'd seen it destroy so many
careers....he'd seen it destroy families.
    “Now don't
freak out, but we've made a few changes to the set list,” Jared
went on, and Jack bristled. He hated last minute changes.
    “We? Do you
mean Michael made changes?” Jared's expression told him his
assumption was correct. Jack's mood darkened even further. He was so
tired of Michael's petty little power plays, trying to throw him off,
fighting him tooth and nail for the spotlight. Michael was a talented
bass player, and before the band made it big, a solid friend. But
more than any of them, fame had gone to Michael's head. He threw
himself into the rock star cliché, throwing money around,
starting fights with other artists, and taking fans back to his hotel
room after every gig. He couldn't stand the thought of Jack