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Part 5 - Turning the page

If Lindsey wanted to play games Stevie would play them. She sat on the balcony of her suite as Gary rubbed her shoulders, they watched all the people parading by.

"I've done so much for him, Gary, so much..." Stevie nervously played with her hair.

"I can't seem to understand why he acts so hostile," Gary spoke.

"Lindsey has always been a very jealous and controlling person. I haven't seen him this way in years..." her voice trailed off.

"Somehow I feel as if I'm the one to blame," he said guiltily.

She turned to face him, "No, honey, it's not your fault. If anyone is at fault, it's me."

That concerned Gary, "Why would it be your fault?"

"You have to understand where Lindsey and I have stood for many years. Our love could never be touched, still can't; the romance is ALWAYS there between us. From everything we've experienced both of us always thought there was a chance that we'd end back up together but I was sick and tired of waiting on him, I told myself that I could no longer put myself through such turmoil and let it go. He's always seen me alone, never with anyone, and that's given him control; all I wanted in my life was him and he knew it. The fact that he could have his little family and rob the cradle while he had me yearning on the side gave him so much power, it's all a Lindsey thing. He'll just have to learn to get over us as much as I have..." Stevie couldn't believe what she was saying and most of all she couldn't believe WHO she was saying this to. What would Gary think of her?

Quietly, Gary moved away from her and leaned up against the railing, "For some reason I feel that I just cannot compete."

Standing, Stevie raced to his side to console him, "Gary, baby, I've grown so fond of you and I love you. There is absolutely no competition between you and him. I've never been a match to his younger wife, why would I want to compare him to you?" she knew deep down that he was right but she was determined to make her relationship with him work.

"Stevie, you are the most entriquing woman I have ever met. I can understand how he is feeling, believe me, I cannot blame him for his outbusts," Gary was sympathic.

She couldn't believe what she was hearing, "You're not angry with him? I can assure that's what he's trying to provoke."

"No. It means what I've snagged is rare, special, and one of a kind. If you have an ex boyfriend still in love with you all these years and married to another woman, that only means that you are worth fighting for," his words sunk her heart. In ways his words reminded Stevie so much of Lindsey.

"Thank you," Stevie touched his face, "I now see this situation in a different light."

**

Lindsey peeled the label off his bottle of beer. Their next show wasn't for another six hours. Usually he would just grab himself a Coke and wind down to get ready but he needed something stronger, a bottle of Guiness would have to do. He felt like such a fool, how could he have let himself get carried away like that in front of her fiance'? It was only obvious now that he had extreme jealousy issues that were effecting him deep down. Emotionally he wasn't sure how much of this he could stand anymore. Knowing that she was snuggled up next to him night after night while he lay in his bed alone. He should have begged Kristen to come along with him just so he could feel her against him instead of waiting for Stevie to come around. Never did he think Stevie would find someone else other than him but she was right, it was taking him too long to realize he's been trailing her along on a journey that really had no end; there was no way he could divorce his wife and lose the chance of ever seeing his children again. He's kept Stevie under his spell for many years and the fact that he no longer had her under control was showing him that he hasn't changed as much as he'd thought. When the two of them were a couple he always had the same issues, thinking she's off shacking with another man or jealous of a decent looking man that she worked with; how could he not see that he was literally destroying what little love they had left for each other?
Realizing that if he kept sitting here at the bar any longer he'd end up getting smashed and that would make for an awful concert experience. He was too old to go on stage high or drunk, it was time to take control of himself.