Chapter 59
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Rory said instinctively before she looked up and realized that she was staring at the annoyed face of Mickey Nicks.
“Yeah! You should be. Wait… you are... that girl. Wait, how do I know you?” he asked as he struggled to light his cigarette with shaking hands.
“Er… You took shelter in my house from the storm. Remember? Just a few days ago.” She couldn’t believe his memory was that bad.
“Oh right!” he replied, but Rory wasn’t sure that he really did remember.
“Have you seen Arsen or Don around?” she asked, but Mickey’s attention was already lost on the two young girls who had slid up to him from nowhere. They had cleavage for days, impossibly short skirts, and long legs.
“Mickey! Have you seen Arsen or Don?” she asked again sternly, making sure she got his attention.
“Ugh… yeah… they’re around.” With that, Mickey turned around and led the two girls into the house. Was he drunk? Was he high? Probably both, Rory concluded.
“I was sure you weren’t gonna show up.” A gruff voice reached her ears from behind, and a smile came on her face as she saw Don approaching her with a glass of champagne.
“Hey, Don. I was just asking Mickey about you.”
“Well… he is rarely aware of what he himself is up to, so…” He let out a slight laugh. “Have you been here long? Did the car pick you up okay?”
“Yes, Don. Thanks for sending it. Haven’t been here long, but I was getting lost in this sea of strangers.” Rory exhaled.
“Yeah these things can be like that, but you get used to it. Especially when you realize that everyone else at the party is probably way more self-conscious than you are.”
“Really? All these pretty, well-dressed people look like they have everything sorted in their lives.” Rory looked around the party.
“There is always more to it than meets the eye. The surface of the sea is never a good reflection of what lies at the bottom.” Don smiled.
“Does that apply to you too?” Rory chuckled.
“Me? Oh no. I am just a simple farm boy from Kansas.” He smiled.
“Really? No way!”
“Yes way. Why do you think I like LA so much? Because Kansas is even more dreary.” He laughed and the way he said it made Rory laugh as well.
“Speaking of dreary…” Don said to himself and looked out toward the entrance. A tall blonde woman dressed to the nines entered, followed by her entourage who reminded Rory of little minions.
“I think I’ve seen her somewhere,” she thought out loud, and then it came back to her. She was the woman she spotted the other day when she had met Arsen at Mike’s garage. The woman who had the paparazzi following her. Rory also remembered that after spotting the blonde Arsen had seemed to be in a hurry to get away from the place.
“I am surprised you don’t know her, but then again, I’m not. That, Rory, is Tanya Cox. Heiress to the Cox hotel chain empire. Reality TV star, singer, actress, and God knows what else. Though if she is good at any of that is a whole different discussion.”
“Well, she surely seems to be the centerpiece of this party,” Rory said and took a sip of the bubbly.
“She is—and that's not an accident. She knows what she’s doing. There is not an event in the world she won’t go to for PR mileage,” Don said, with what seemed to Rory like a certain sense of disdain.
“I guess some people have all the luck in the world,” Rory sighed.
“If I had her luck, I’d be doing better things with my life than mimicking Barbie doll songs while prancing half naked around the stage.” Don continued, a half smile back on his face. “I remember back in the 60s and the 70s, it was all about the music. Nobody cared about PR or Instagram or whatever. It was all about good times and meaningful music that spoke to your soul. Since then, apart from the songs Arsen writes, no other music has truly spoken to me.”
Rory realized that Don was not just a manager of the biggest band in the world, but also someone who loved their music. Someone who cared about his clients, especially one of them.
“Arsen seems to be the perfect rock god from LA,” Rory remarked, and then blushed, wondering why she had said that out loud.
“Far from it. There is much more to Arsen Ford than people know. He is no degener
ate rockstar born on Sunset Boulevard.” Rory wasn’t sure, but she had a feeling that Don was referring to Mickey and his lifestyle.