“You can’t be here … oh, you’re David A. Dawson,” he said as he quickly realized his mistake. “You’re needed in the dressing room. Your staff can hang out in the Green Room.”
He grabbed my arm and led me to the back like I was ten years old. Manaia ignored his dismissal and followed me to the dressing area. The man looked at Manaia and frowned when he saw he’d followed us.
I decided to play with this guy, who was just a tad too bossy for my taste. I did the potty dance Kyle does when it’s way too late.
“Mister, I have to go,” I whined.
The look on his face was worth it. I’ll give Manaia credit; he just stared at Mr. Bossy.
“Uh,” the guy stammered.
“Right now!” I announced.
“This way,” he finally said to lead me to the men’s room.
“Next, he’ll tell you he needs help,” Manaia predicted.
I think the guy finally got that he was treating me like I was a little kid, even though I guessed he was only five or so years older than me. Mr. Bossy closed his eyes and shook his head like my mom did when I was on her last nerve after a long day. He pointed to where the restroom was and stomped off.
Rita James chose that moment to stroll out of the back.
“I see you’re already causing trouble,” she chastised.
I gave her a quick hug.
“Sorry, but I really do need to excuse myself for a moment,” I said and left to use the men’s room.
When I came back, Rita and the man I’d tweaked were talking. I decided I’d better be good and get my clothes for the show straightened out. I almost fell down laughing when I found Birthrite dressed up as elves. With their riot of different hair colors, their green outfits made a statement.
“Ladies, looking good,” I teased.
“Bite me, David,” Amy, the multicolor-haired drummer, shot back.
I whipped out my phone and took their picture. The looks of horror on their faces when I snapped the shot made it a keeper.
“You’re so dead,” Jett threatened with frustration written on every line of her face.
I wasn’t sure why she was upset. Tomorrow, she’d be wearing that outfit on stage, live—in front of millions of viewers. I looked at the picture and smiled.
“I think this should be your next album cover,” I suggested.
“Just wait to see what they have planned for you to wear,” Jett threatened.
They all had satisfied looks, which made me suspicious. Rita found us glaring at each other.
“What did he do now?” she asked, assuming it was me who caused this.
“They said you picked out horrid clothes for me to dress up in. I hope I’m not going to be Santa to these evil elves,” I said, going on the offensive.
“Settle down. We’re all just getting into the spirit of the season,” Rita said and shooed me to the lady in charge of wardrobe.
All I’ll say is that at least I didn’t have to wear an elf or Santa costume.
◊◊◊
The dress rehearsal was used to work out the timing of when everyone had to be on stage and in what costume. We also sang just enough of our songs to make sure they had the sound levels right. What sounded good in the theater didn’t mean it would sound the same on TV. I’d seen some reality TV singing shows where they didn’t get it right, and those were awful.
We would do the show tomorrow starting at five o’clock so it would be live on the east coast. The network would show it on tape delay later for the western half of the country.
As I was making a costume change, I received a text from Lexi. She was at my companies’ Christmas party, and she let me know that everyone liked the Cookie Butter. She mentioned they might like their Christmas bonuses even better. It wasn’t a very subtle hint that we’d done well this year with the management company’s growth. Dad had said it was way ahead of the initial projections. I was sure he and Caryn had made the call to share the wealth. That’s why I paid them.
◊◊◊
When I finally made it back to the house, Brook’s parents and mine had already left for home. I got to my room and found all my belongings were missing. I suspected that Brook had moved everything to the master suite. Sure enough, I found my gear there, and Brook was sound asleep in my bed. The master had a king-size bed, so if my girlfriend needed room to roll around, she could do it without keeping me awake all night.
It was late, so I got undressed and joined her.
◊◊◊
Chapter 17 – Christmas Special Saturday December 24
Today was going to be a busy day. We had to finish shooting this week’s episode of the J-Drama, and then I had to hurry to the studio where they would film the Christmas Special. As I came out of the bathroom, freshly showered, I found Brook awake. I gave her a quick good-morning kiss.
“How did it go yesterday?” she asked.
“Good. I think Rita may have gone too far down memory lane. She has us dressing up in period costumes for the Christmas Special,” I complained and then smiled. “You should see the elf suits Birthrite has to wear.”
I don’t think Brook was listening to me. She reached out and loosened my towel around my waist.
“Look what I found,” she purred as she grasped Mr. Happy.
