Chapter 64
Soundchecks were over and Jesse had disappeared. Richie had a good idea where she was and when he went to check, he was right. He stood in the doorway watching as Jesse and Obie went over what Anthony had written for her.
"Ready to record it?" asked Anthony.
"I think so," hesitated Jesse.
"Get one of Richie's hats," advised Obie. "One of the western style hats."
Jesse reached behind her. "You mean this one?"
"Perfect," smiled Obie as Jesse put it on.
Anthony directed, "Move over there....so Richie's image is behind you."
"Hang on, Jess," said Richie making his presence known.
"Richie!" she beamed. "Are you done?"
"Yeah. Jon and I are about to do the video for our site."
Jesse moved to Richie and gave him a kiss. "You gonna hang around?"
"I want to see what you're doing so yeah."
"Come here, Rich," said Obie. "We've got the site set up and a domain name."
"Richie, he won't tell me how much it cost," whispered Jesse.
"I'll take care of it later. Go do the video."
Jesse went over to where Anthony had set up a stool in front of the tour poster with Richie behind her. She sat down and looked nervously to Richie. He gave her a smile and nodded his head for encouragement.
"Okay, Jess. I'm going to count down and I'll point to you to start," said Anthony.
Jesse nodded, took a deep breath, and waited. On cue, "Hi, I'm Jesse and guess what? I'm one of you. That's right, I'm a fan of Bon Jovi and have been all my life. That's why I want to share a very special day with you. On June 27th, I'm going to marry Richie Sambora, the love of my life. By joining Jesse's Gang, you'll get exclusive first looks at every moment from Richie proposing to the honeymoon. All of the proceeds are going to a very special cause, Care for Kelly, the young lady from Richie's hometown of Woodbridge, New Jersey. Take five minutes to join and help Richie help Kelly and share in our love. You'll also get a chance to join Richie and me on our special day...two lucky winners will be chosen to serve as bridesmaids. Check it out."
"That was AWESOME, Jess," praised Anthony as he pushed stop.
Jesse looked at Richie. "What do you think?"
"You shouldn't have put the part about the bridesmaids at the end. Here," he said taking the paper. He circled what he was talking about and showed her where he thought it should go. "Why don't you try it again?"
"Let's do it," said Anthony.
Jesse took a deep breath again and waited. On Anthony's cue, she began. "Hi, I'm Jesse and guess what? I'm one of you. That's right, I've been a fan of Bon Jovi all my life and I'm living every fan's dream. On June 27th, I'm going to marry Richie Sambora, the man of my dreams. I've created this site for two reasons - to share a very special time with the fans and to help someone very dear to Richie. By joining 'Jesse's Gang', you'll get exclusive first looks at all the wedding preparations from Richie proposing to me to the honeymoon. You'll also be helping Richie raise money for Kelly Mahon, the young lady from his hometown. The first two hundred to register will receive an invitation to our wedding in London. Those two hundred names will also be put into a lottery and two lucky winners will get to be my bridesmaids. Take a few minutes to join. All proceeds will be going to the Care for Kelly Foundation. Thank you!"
"MUCH better," praised Richie.
"Okay. I'll edit this and get it to Obie," said Anthony.
"Thanks," said Jesse.
"Jesse, I've got about two hours before I have to be doing something else for the show. I'm going to work on your site some more.."
"Thanks, Obie."
"Come with me, beautiful," said Richie taking her hand.
"Where are we going?"
"To do the clip for our site with Jon. Then, the three of us are going out to check out the bar for the after party."
"Cool! I finally get to go to an after-party."
"And this time, you don't have to be a designated driver."
Jesse looked up. "Can I ask you something?"
"Jess, you can ask me anything."
"Aren't you..." Jesse hesitated. "I read where you were in rehab...because of your drinking."
"Yeah, I was and I won't lie to you. I like to drink. The stint in rehab was court-ordered. I got caught drinking and driving and I had Ava in the car with me. It was stupid but I can't change it now. I try to make sure I have a designated driver with me all the time."
"That's why you let me drive in California?"
"Yes. That time period for me was tough. Daddy died and Denise and I had just broken up. Heather was being a bitch about letting Ava come to the funeral with me too."
"I can relate to loosing your father. When Daddy died, I felt so numb. If I hadn't had Stevie, I don't know what I would have done."
"I've got you now to help keep me straight," smiled Richie as he hugged her. "So, do you drink?"
Jesse laughed, "Yes, I use to party with Daddy and his friends until I got pregnant with Stevie."
"Favorite drink?"
"Depends on my mood and what is going on."
"Well, tonight, you're gonna let your hair down."
"I can't believe I let you talk me into going on with you tonight."
"I'm glad I did. You need to wear something skimpy too."
"Already know what I'm wearing. Richie."
"Yes dear."
"What do you want for your birthday?"
"Already got what I want," he purred as he hugged her to him tighter. By now, they'd found Jon and he was ready.
Jesse gave them the website's address and moved over to the side. It took them about ten minutes and then the three headed to The Voodoo Lounge to check out the VIP lounge and arrangements for the evening.
