"What was your first impression of me and the guys?"

"Well, I- um..."I shook my head as thoughts of Nikki began to flood my memory. "I was instantly drawn to you because of your hair; Every one else has black or blonde or whatever, but you were unique." I could feel my throat closing. "You seemed like a nice guy and..." I trailed off, trying to stay calm. "Y'know, I'm gonna go get another drink, Axl. I'm not really feeling whiskey right now."

"Oh, okay," he said happily.

I hurried across the club looking for the restroom in fear of possibly crying in front of anyone, only to slam into a tall blonde man.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" I said, shocked, feeling a tear run down my cheek, which I quickly wiped away.

"No, don't sweat it; I'm fine. You okay?"

"Yeah," I said.

I looked up and my jaw dropped. Not three feet from me stood an old friend- the perfect distraction.

"Oh my god, Taime?! It's been so long!"

"Sadie?! Holy shit! Come here, doll!" he said, opening his arms.

I hugged him so tight that I'd've thought that he and I had merged bodies. I never wanted to let go of him.

"I missed you so much! I haven't seen you in a few years," I said, finally releasing him. "I think your hair was still dark then."

"It probably was, but man, I've missed you, too!"

I quickly  looked over to the table, where Axl chatted with a few random people. They looked happy, so I decided to leave them alone for a bit so I could talk to Taime.

"So, who are you here with?"

"Axl Rose," I said with a smile.

"No shit? Not Kelly or Nikki, eh?"

 I felt chills run through my body at the reminder of Nikki.

"No... I just saw Kelly a few weeks ago though; L.A. Guns were touring with the Mötley Crüe guys."

"Ah, and what about Nikki? I know there's gotta be a story there."

"Man... we haven't talked since the last day Kelly was with us."

"Really? What happened?"

"Well-"

"Hi," a sexy redhead breathed as she brushed past Taime's arm.

I felt my eyes lock onto her as she passed us. She wore a very tight, very revealing blue dress that hugged her body in all of the best ways. Her curves were in all the right places, and she had a pretty face. To be honest, she was a total fox.

"Oh, hello," he said surprised.  "Continue..." he said, looking back to me.

"Wait, really? You're not going to follow her?"

"No, why would I?"

"Because she wanted you- and because I fucking would! She was hot."

"Okay, we can talk about your bisexuality later. I want to know what happened with you and Nikki."

"Do you have a table?" I asked with a laugh.

"Uh, no. It was that bad?"

"Yeah kinda... Long story short, he got really territorial, hit a soft spot and I nearly fractured his nose. We haven't talked since."

"That's my girl!" he said excitedly. "Stand up for yourself."

"I feel like I was over reacting but at the same time, it was justified."

"Don't let anyone fuck with you, babe. You're a tough one; I really learned that when you laid that guy out- do you remember that? We all went to a strip club and some guy grabbed your ass or something?"

I laughed at the memory. That was honestly a wild night, but it was probably one of the best nights of my life so far- at least it was high on the list.

"I do remember that. That was the night I flashed the guy at the door so he would let me in, right?"

"Yeah!" he said with a laugh. "You were the only minor in the building that didn't have a fake ID."

I sighed happily. "I miss those times," I said softly.

"Me too... God, girl, I miss you!" he said as he pulled me into another hug.

"I miss you, too! I can't believe it's been so long. What were the odds of seeing you here?"

"I don't know, but I'm glad. Brent and the guys aren't here, otherwise I'd hunt them down for you," he said apologetically.

"No worries, next time."

I glanced back to Axl once more. Beautiful Latin girls sat on either side of him while he chatted with a man in a suit. One of the girls was getting a little too friendly with her hands, so Axl pushed them away, which made me smile, but the smile dropped seconds later; he started kissing her.

"What the fuck?" I managed to murmur under my breath. I knew that he wouldn't hear me, but I didn't know how else to react.

"What happened?" Taime asked, looking around.

I gestured to the table, where Axl and the girl were fully making out.

"Ah, shit. Sorry, Sadie. He's an idiot." he said.

"Y'know, the bad part is that I don't think I care as much as I should. I'm just kinda surprised- although, the more I think about it, the less I am."

"Well," he said putting an arm around my waist, "if I were him, I would be doing the best to keep you and not fuck anything up."

I looked up at Taime and felt a strange flutter in my stomach; his eyes were full of lust, but there was a tender, genuine quality to them. Just then, I realized that I could work with this situation. I had always had an attraction to Taime, and seeing him after such a long time really brought it to my attention. Now that Axl was busy, I could just say it was only fair if he got mad.

"The blonde looks amazing," I said as I reached up to play with the long strands of his hair.

"Thank you," he said with a flirtatious smile. "It's just something different."

"Yeah it is... It's a sexy look for you, though."

"You think so?" he asked, pulling me closer.

"Definitely," I said as I pressed against his chest.

"Please tell me that you're dropping hints."

"I'm honestly laying it out for you; I'm not trying to be sneaky."

"Will your boyfriend kill me if I meet you in the," he cleared his throat, "ladies room?"

"No; he's not technically my boyfriend, and he doesn't need to know. Besides, he's busy, in case you hadn't noticed. Plus, on top of all of that, I have a 'free pass' that I can use as an excuse if he finds out."

"Okay... Let me finish this drink and then-" he looked at his drink, then back to me. "Y'know what? Fuck it. I've waited a few years. The drink can wait," he said.

He snaked an arm around my waist and led me towards the women's restroom so that we could take care of our own business.

°°°°°°

"Come out after I do," I hissed to Taime.

"Okay," he whispered.

He stood behind me and I could feel his breath tickle my neck.

"I'll be by the bar."

"You got it," he said, spinning me around to place a final kiss on my lips.

"Make sure my lipstick isn't on you!" I said as I rushed out.

I headed towards the bar and looked back to Axl's booth. He was still talking to a different group of people, smiling away. It was like he hadn't even noticed me disappear- although the girls were gone. I knew he would pretend that it hadn't happened. I leaned against the bar while I waited for my drink and thought for a while.

If Taime was the one I would use my pass on, I was okay with it- especially because Axl was kissing other girls. I had always wanted to sleep with Taime, but until tonight, I had never had the opportunity. Of course, I had never though we'd hook up in a club bathroom, but it was better than nothing; I was more than thrilled either way. He was a great guy, and the sex was just as good, if not better- plus his lips were amazingly soft.

Now I could say I had hit the four man mark. I wouldn't be able to compare them, because they were all so different. I could tell that I had had good luck with my men so far. They were all great... Obviously some where better in certain areas than others, but that was to be expected. Still, it was slightly different with all of them- easiest way to describe it was like they each had their own style. At this point, I just had to hope that I didn't look as if I had been fucked senseless against a bathroom wall.

Soon enough, I had my drink and Taime was slinking out of the bathroom with a big smile plastered across his face. After weaving through the crowd, he was at the bar with me and had an arm around my shoulders.

"That was probably the best thing that has happened to me in a long time," he said with a smirk.

"Oh god yeah. Keep smirking and we might have to have another go," I said, cocking an eyebrow.

"I would not be sad about that," he said.

I observed him as he attempted to flag the bartender. Taime was honestly gorgeous. He had this goofy grin, sexy- now blonde- hair, and made me act completely crazy and impulsively, even after reappearing for twenty minutes. His hazel eyes could read me like a book, and they practically compelled me to fall in love with his puppy dog pout.

"If only I had met you before Nikki," I mused.

He glanced over and smiled inquisitively.

"I said, 'if only I could have met you before Nikki.' Things would have been easier," I said louder.

"I wish that we had met before him, too. I get why he's a little territorial, though. No man would want to lose someone like you."

I laughed. "Do you think so?"

"Definitely."

"Well you haven't met Axl. He doesn't seem to mind," I said.

"Like I said, he's an idiot."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Trust me, I know he is," Taime said, kissing my cheek.

A faint smile crept to my face before fading again. Looking in the mirror behind the bar, I realized that Axl was still alone, waiting for my return. Thirty minutes had probably gone by since I had told him that I was going to get a drink.

"Taime, I think you should meet Axl."

"You sure?"

I nodded.

"Okay... our secret, right?" he said as he put out his pinky.

"Our secret," I said with a laugh, intertwining our fingers. "Come on," I said, leading him to the booth.

As we approached the table, I could feel a funny tingle in my stomach. It was almost like a bad feeling- like realization; realization that Axl wasn't who, or what, I wanted. At the sight of me, he shooed away the girl that had just walked up and made room for Taime and myself.

"Hey, I was wondering where you were!" he said happily.

 Man, he was in a great mood tonight.

"Yeah, sorry. I ran into a friend. I wanted you to meet him," I said with a smirk. "This is Taime Downe. He sings for Faster Pussycat. We go back."

"Yeah, way back," Taime said with a laugh.

"Nice to meet you, Taime," Axl said, offering a hand.

Taime shook it and smiled.

"I think I've met you before... my buddy and I own the Cathouse club down in L.A.."

"Oh, maybe I have. You do look familiar. How did you and Sadie meet?" Axl asked.

"She used to date my old bass player, Kelly. He plays in L.A. Guns now; Sadie was saying that they were on tour with you guys."

"Yeah, sorta, but they actually left the day we got here- them and Whitesnake. We're the opener for the rest of the tour."

"That's rad, man. So, how long are you guys in this city?"

"Two more shows," Axl said.

"Nice. Maybe I'll be able to catch one," he said.

"That would be awesome! Bring the rest of Faster and it'll be a party," I said excitedly.

"I'll do my best!" he said with a laugh. "Well, I'm gonna go scope out the other girls... Axl seems to have you locked in," he said with a smirk.

My eyes widened but I smiled. I must have given him the look that said, "don't fuck around," because he said goodbye to us and disappeared into the crowded club.

"He seems nice," Axl mumbled.

"Yeah. He's a great guy."

"I bet. Lasting friendships are kind of rare," he mused.

"Yeah, but look at you and Slash. You guys are going to be best friends until you die," I said with a laugh.

"Well, yeah, but I mean that's different. I see Slash everyday, and I put up with his shit constantly. You haven't seen Taime in years."

"Are you jealous?" I teased.

"Yes, absolutely. So jealous," he said wrapping his arms around me.

"Sarcastic?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Got it."

This had to have been the most inconvenient time for me to realize that Axl wasn't the one. Sure, I liked him, but he wasn't the one.

It may not have seemed like it, but Taime and I had a deeper connection from when we used to hang out. Taime had almost been my boyfriend when I met him, but then Kelly swept me away again. Still, Taime was a close second to Nikki, and that was pretty impressive. I knew that no matter what, I would never be able to shake Nikki, but it would be hard to tell Axl.

How would I tell him?

Saying, "hey, Axl, I don't like you anymore," was shitty, but saying, "hey, Axl, this isn't working out," sounded fake. I would give it a couple of days before I made a decision. Maybe it was just the excitement of having sex with Taime that was getting to me, or maybe it was seeing him with that other girl that had triggered my thoughts. I just wanted to be sure.