Sarah woke to the feel of Sam's hand, as he ran it across her cheek. She felt him sit on the bed beside her.
"Hey beautiful. How are you doing? Trish told me you were having a bad day." He kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry if I caused some of it."
Sarah licked her lips, nervously, her mouth felt dry. "What did Trish tell you?"
"She said you talked to your mom and were homesick. She also gave me hell for the way I've been acting." Sam smiled wryly.
Sarah twisted around to look at the clock, "It's three a.m.! Have you been in Georgie's room all this time?" Sarah listened for any noises coming from the room next door, but all was quiet.
"No" Sam got up and paced the room, nervously. "I went back there, but I didn't stay long."
He looked over at Sarah. "I left and went for a walk. I needed to do some thinking."
Sam came back and sat beside her again, holding her hands in his. "Let's go for a ride. Did you know there's a lake here?" He smiled tenderly at her, and his dimples deepened.
Sarah nodded, her eyes wide. "You want to go to the lake, now?"
"Yeah, I think we have to get out. Let some of that breeze off the lake blow through your hair. Spend some time, just you and me, away from the group." Sam's hands reached around Sarah and started loosening her braid. He slid his fingertips through it, spreading it over her shoulders.
"You're beautiful, Sarah. And I haven't been taking care of you. You're not happy, and it's my fault."
He pulled her into a hug, kissing the top of her head. "Let's just go for a ride, ok?"
The streets were quiet and empty at this time of the night. Sarah held tight to Sam as they glided through them. They found a beach access road and pulled into it, stopping at the chain across the entrance.
"The beach is closed." Sarah said quietly. The silence of the night was magnified as Sam shut down the engine. She could hear the waves as they came in and broke on the shore.
Sam swung off his bike, helping Sarah off, also. "Since when does that stop you from going to the beach? I thought you liked breaking the rules."
Sarah tipped her chin up as Sam unhooked her helmet, nipping at her lips as he slid it off ."Let's break some rules, sweetheart."
They sat on the sand, Sarah tucked in between Sam's knees. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. The breeze off the lake caressed her skin as it blew gently across her and the sounds of the waves soothed her, lulling her into a serene silence. Sam's arms were wrapped around her and felt warm against her cool cheek.
Sam lit a joint and held it to her lips; she hit it and held in the smoke, feeling it expand in her lungs.
"Look at the stars, sweetheart." Sam said in awe, he blew the smoke across her neck and she felt his lips tickle behind her ear.
Sarah looked up at the sky, the stars splashed across the blackness. The brightest sparkled like diamonds against a backdrop of glittering smaller ones, reaching down to float on the waves of the lake.
"They look close enough to touch." Sarah whispered and held her arm out. "It's like I could just reach out and take a handful."
Sam nuzzled his nose in her hair and squeezed her tighter. "I would give them all to you, if I could."
He sounded sad as he asked her. "Do you want to go home, Sarah?"
Sarah let out a gasp. "No! Why would you think that?"
Sam felt relieved, the pain in his heart diminished. He was afraid she would say yes, and he didn't know how he would handle it.
"I know it hasn't been easy this past week. Probably not what you expected." Sam spoke slowly, choosing his words. "I haven't paid a lot of attention to you lately, being so wrapped up in everything that's going on. Trish pointed out all the things I've been doing wrong."
He gave a small sigh. "I'm sorry for all of it."
Sarah sat still, staring at the stars as he spoke. Everything he was saying was true, but that didn't make her want to leave him.
"Sam, I'm with you, no matter what. We will work through this, I know."
"I took a walk tonight and did a lot of thinking about us. I know this is as new to you as it is to me. But I think you are suffering the worst. I hate to see that, I want you to be happy, I want us to be happy." His voice was anguished.
"Are you happy?" Sarah asked, softly.
"I'm happy when I'm with you, and when I'm onstage, singing." Sam said, reflectively. "That's all I want to do, Sarah. I hate all this bullshit that Gisette is throwing at me."
"Isn't she doing it to the whole band, not just you, but everyone?"
"Not as much, she seems to be targeting me. I'm not putting enough effort into being a group. I shouldn't be spending so much time with you. There is always some little thing that pisses her off."
He pleaded with her. "Just please, stick it out, don't leave. I'll work it out with her."
Sarah shook her head, "I won't leave. But I hate to see you like this."
"It will get better, I promise. She can't go on like this forever."
The joint had burned down, and Sam lit two cigarettes, passing one to Sarah. He held her close against him, his voice was muffled against her hair.
"I need to ask you something....... If I took you home for a visit on these days off, would you still come back out on tour with me, when it's time to leave?"
Sarah heard the worried note in his question. She turned to face him and answered immediately, with no hesitation in her answer.
"Absolutely! Really, Sam? You will take me home? I can see everyone?"
Sam chuckled with relief. "Yes, if that's what you want. I was going to go somewhere else, where we can be alone. But if you want to go back for a visit, then we will."
He put his finger under her chin, lifting her face to look in her eyes. "A visit, Sarah. Right?"
Her eyes sparkled as she nodded her head. "A visit. Then we will join up with everyone else, I promise."
They shaded their eyes against the spotlight that suddenly shined brightly on them.
"Ok, kids, the beach is closed. Time to move on." The police officer behind the flashlight walked towards them.
Sam stood up, holding out a hand for Sarah. He brushed the sand off them, apologizing to the officer.
"I'm sorry, sir, we were just talking. We'll go now."
The policeman looked closely at Sam's face. "Aren't you in that band, Blood Brothers?"
Sam nodded, silently. He didn't know if that would be a good thing or not.
"Yeah, I took my daughter and her friend to see you tonight." The officer laughed. "They're 15, it was their first concert. She has your album. Christ, that's all I hear around the house."
He looked at Sarah, "Are you ok, miss?"
Sarah smiled and nodded to show that she was here willingly.
"So, your band is touring around here. Where do you go next?" The officer was rummaging around in his pocket. He pulled out a scrap of paper.
"Can I get your autograph for my daughter? She's gonna be so surprised when I tell her I met you."
"Sure," Sam took the paper and pen from the officer. "What's her name?"
Sarah turned around so Sam could use her back to steady the paper.
"Sara, S-A-R-A. No H at the end."
"That's my name! But with the H." Sarah said.
"Good name, I like it." Sam said as he wrote on the paper. "Thanks for bringing your daughter to our concert. It's always nice to hear that someone likes our music. We're in Minneapolis tomorrow night. Maybe you could bring her again?" He handed the paper back to the officer.
"No, I think one night of rock music is enough for my ears." The police officer extended his hand. "It was nice meeting you. Sara's not going to believe this when I tell her. Thanks."
"My pleasure. And we'll go now." Sam took Sarah's hand and they followed the officer off the beach.
The police officer stood by his car and watched the motorcycle pull onto the road. He knew he would be an instant hero in his daughter's eyes. She would ask him a million questions about Sam. She had a major crush on the lead singer.
MONDAY - JUNE 7, 1976
Sam was gone when Sarah woke up at 10:00. He'd left a note on his pillow, explaining that he had to arrange some things for their trip. He said he would be back by 10:30 and they would head for Minneapolis.
Sarah quickly got their things packed, finishing as he came into the room. He held a small, flat, square package in his hand, wrapped in gold foil with a petite red bow on top.
"What's that?" Sarah asked, excitedly, reaching for it.
"No way! This is your surprise! You'll get it when we get there, not until." He added it to their bag. "And no picking it up or shaking it." He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up to kiss her soundly on the mouth. "Promise?"
"I promise." She leaned into him, her lips against his. "Do we have time?" Her hand travelled down to his zipper, rubbing against it.
It had been nearly three days since they had made love.
"I wish we did." Sam's body was responding to her touch and he found it hard to pull away.
"But we have to go. I have to go to practice as soon as we get there."
He gave her braid a tug, and pulled the end around to tickle her nose, playfully. "We catch a plane right after the show. Georgie is taking care of everything."
They had ended up letting Georgie and Trish in on their plans, needing their help. The other couple had agreed with them, it was best not to let Gisette know.
Gisette thought they were driving straight to New York to drop off the bike and catching the next plane to St. Louis. If she knew they were actually shipping the bike home and taking the two days for themselves, she would be pissed and cause more problems with Sam.
Sarah and Sam climbed off the bike and stood looking around. The Harley-Davidson shop that had agreed to ship his bike home was big, with a retail store in front that sold their merchandise. They started walking towards the entrance, then Sarah stopped and looked back at Sam's bike.
"I'm going to miss riding with you." She said to Sam, sadly. She wasn't looking forward to riding the tour bus. Being with Trish was the only good thing about it.
"Yeah, I know. But as soon as we can, we'll get the bike back and go somewhere. Just us." Sam took her hand and led her into the store.
As Sam filled out the necessary papers to ship his bike, Sarah browsed through the clothing section. She was looking at some tee shirts when Sam came up behind her.
"See anything you want?" He asked as he looked through the selection. He picked up a black one that read "AND ON THE EIGHTH DAY, GOD CREATED HARLEY DAVIDSON", Mineapolis, Mn. was written in smaller letters on the sleeve.
"I like this one, I think I'll get it to wear to the show tonight." He held it up to himself, showing her.
Sarah nodded enthusiastically, "That would be a good idea. The crowd will love it because it's from a local shop."
He continued looking through them. "Small for you?"
"Yes! I want one too!" Sarah helped him look, exclaiming delightedly when he pulled one out.
Georgie picked them up in a rental car, dropping Sarah off at the hotel and driving himself and Sam to the place that Gisette had found for them to practice.
Sarah spent the afternoon with Trish, telling her about her hometown and how excited she was to go see everyone.
"I'm glad you're getting away. I will be holding down the fort, with Gisette." Trish pulled a long face. "The drive to St. Louis will feel longer than 10 or 12 hours, believe me."
"I'm sorry you have to spend that much time with her on the bus. It's not something I would look forward to either." Sarah understood how Trish felt.
"But we will see you and Sam early Thursday morning. Your plane lands at 10:00? We'll be there to pick you up."
Trish handed her a small camera, "Take lots of pictures. I want to see them when you get back. I've decided to put together an album for you."
After the show, Sarah and Sam took the rental car straight to the airport, catching a late flight to Detroit, where they would get a connecting flight to Cleveland. They would have a rental car waiting for them there, and drive to Breezewood, arriving around 9 the next morning.
Sarah hadn't told anyone they were coming, she wanted to surprise them.
Sarah held Sam's hand during take-off, they both grinned at each other, excited to start their vacation.
The seatbelt light clicked off and Sam looked up as it dinged. He gave Sarah a wicked grin as he whispered. "Have you ever heard of the mile high club?"
Sarah giggled and looked around. The small plane was nearly deserted, they were in the next to the last row, with empty seats around them. The silence coming from the few passengers up front indicated they were probably sleeping. The stewardesses were gathered at the front of plane, talking quietly.
"Here?" She whispered back.
"Sh-h-h" Sam cautioned her as he laid back his seat and motioned for her to do the same. He slid to the one beside him and laid it back, then raised the arms that separated them. Sarah watched as he picked up the blanket she had requested earlier. He spread it over them.
"How's that?" He pulled Sarah down with him, whispering low. "No screaming."
The stewardesses gave Sarah a knowing smile as she debarked from the plane, causing her to burst into giggles.
"I thought they were going to tell me 'Welcome to the mile high club'! They knew what we were doing, didn't they?"
"Probably." Sam laughed with her. "They did stay at the front of the plane the whole time."
He grabbed her hand and swung it between them, grinning. "I'm surprised they didn't hear you."
"Oh, come on! I kept it down as low as I could. You were even louder." Sarah leaned against Sam and felt his arm come around her.
This was promising to be a good break, maybe one that Sam needed.