Free Heavy Metal (A Badboy Rockstar Romance) by Octavia Wildwood Page B

was also an abundance of snacks spread out on a large counter.  
    “Where are the girls?” Brandon called out to his bandmates.
    “They went out front already,” the conspiracy theorist replied, engrossed in a video game.
    “There’s a section just off the side of the stage that’s reserved especially for guests of the band,” Brandon explained to me.  “Would you like to go out there and join the other women?”
    It was probably completely irrational of me, but the question sent up a red flag for me.  I didn’t want to be lumped in with the sexed up groupies who threw themselves at the band night after night.  Maybe deep down I was afraid that was how Brandon saw me: an irreplaceable woman with no ambition or drive of her own.
    “Getting an authentic concert experience out on the floor might be nice,” I commented. 
    Brandon’s eyebrows shot up.  “You want to be out front with everyone else?” he asked.
    “Yes please.”
    He hesitated.  “I’m not sure you fully understand what you’d be getting yourself into,” he cautioned me.  “Sometimes it can get rowdy out there – moshpits and crowdsurfing are pretty much a given at any show we play.  It can get violent...it doesn’t take much for things to get out of hand quickly.”
    “I can handle it,” I insisted.
    “You really want to go out there?”
    “Yes.”
    “Hang on a second,” Brandon told me and then left the room. 
    Unsure of what was going on, I perched on the armrest of a couch and waited.
    Several minutes later Brandon returned with the bodyguard who had helped us escape the restaurant.  “Steve will take you out front,” Brandon told me.  “I’d do it myself but I can’t exactly go out there without causing a riot.  I’ll see you later, okay?”
    “Alright, have a great show!” I smiled.  Then I followed Steve out front. 
    “Thanks,” I said after he had found a space right up front for me to watch the show.
    “No problem.”             
    He wasn’t leaving.
    I looked at him questioningly.
    “Brandon asked me to stay out here with you and make sure you don’t get more than you bargained for,” he explained, answering the question I hadn’t asked aloud.  “Pretend I’m not even here.  Everyone else does.”
    When the show started, I almost did forget Steve was there.  It was difficult to concentrate on anything except what was happening onstage – not to mention off.  The energy in the room was palpable, and as the excitement grew, I couldn’t help but get drawn into it.  It was contagious. 
    The chaos that erupted all around me as the band took the stage was unreal.  I couldn’t take my eyes off Brandon.  He was right out front, hyping up the crowd and then screaming into the microphone.  He was godlike onstage, storming from one side to the other like he owned the place. 
    The noises coming out of him weren’t just ear-splitting.  They were emotionally wrought, melodic wails of anger, longing and pain.  They transformed the entire venue and clutched at my heartstrings.  He was so intense.  He was so incredible.
    The crowd screamed along with Brandon.  He had them spellbound, eating right out of his hand.  It was really something to behold.  The gentle spirited, kind hearted man I knew was like a different person up there in the spotlight, bold, edgy and unapologetic.  I loved his rough edges.
    Though I wasn’t sure heavy metal was necessarily my music genre of choice, I found myself caught up in the moment, transfixed by Brandon’s heartfelt, gutwrenching lyrics.  It was impossible not to feel what was going on all around me.  The entire atmosphere had shifted.
    Then the moshing began.
    At first I didn’t realize exactly what was going on.  I saw some shoving off to my right and initially thought a fight had broken out.  But as I cautiously watched, I saw a large group of guys deliberately crashing into one another as they banged their heads, completely caught