More than Music

26

Sean cleared his throat, reminding me he was still there. “So I saw your audition. Your band is really good.”

“Thanks, but you don’t need to be worried. The song is a much better pick for you.” I left out the part about how Angel wanted to kill us, too.

“Maybe, but I’m curious to see what you’ll do with it.”

Was he trying to get info out of me or just being nice? Hard to tell. Maybe I’d try the same tactic on him. “What do you think of Angel?”

“You mean when she actually shows up?” He laughed but then looked around like he was worried someone had heard him. I didn’t think they were filming us now, but you never knew. “She’s…okay.”

It sounded like The Static Klingons hadn’t gotten much more mentoring than we had. Of course, they probably hadn’t dropped coffee all over Angel and turned her into a screaming banshee either, but what could you do?

Jared laughed at something Mohawk Girl said, and jealousy sliced through me like a sword to my gut. I shifted my gaze back to the screen as two other bands went on stage, but that only reminded me that we were going up there soon. The walls in the stuffy room began to close in around me, and the urge to bolt grew strong. I desperately needed some air right away.

“I have to go,” I said to Sean. “Good luck today.”

“Thanks. You too.”

I stepped through a door to an outside area, where a few people were smoking, and found an empty spot by the chain-link fence separating the space from the parking lot. I kicked some trash away, sank to the ground, and closed my eyes. My leather pants would probably get all scuffed up, but at this point, I didn’t care.

I’d thought I could handle all of this, but the paralyzing fear had crept back in and this time it was mixed with dread. Did it even matter if we performed today? We already knew Angel would never let us stay on her team, even if we blew The Static Klingons away. And odds are I was going to mess up and embarrass the band during our show. I couldn’t even remember how the guitar went in “Somebody Told Me.” What had been simple in practice now seemed impossible. I'd given up my internship for this show, and now we'd be going home in the second week. It didn't seem fair.

“Hey.” Jared’s voice made me snap my eyes open. “Are you not okay again?”

His reference to the song he’d sung for me before our audition made me smile—barely—but I wished it had been Kyle or even Hector who had found me. Jared looked especially handsome today, with his hair spiked up and the barest hint of eyeliner making his blue eyes pop even more. Being alone with him was a delicious agony.

“I just needed some air,” I said.

“Sorry. Should I go?”

“No,” I said, a little too quickly, and then cursed myself for it. It would be better if he left, but I also wanted him to stay. I was a hot mess.

He sat next to me on the ground, his long legs stretching in front of us. “I always get stressed before shows, too.”

“You do?” I found that hard to believe. Jared was always so confident on stage, so sure of himself. “You make it look easy.”

“That’s all an act, but it does get easier every time. You’ll be a pro soon, too.”

“Assuming we don’t get kicked off this week, you mean.”

He leaned his head back against the fence and stared up at the clear sky. “Trust me, I’m still beating myself up for that.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

Jared was silent for a minute, picking at a rough spot on his black jeans. “So you and that Sean guy, huh?”

“What? No. I mean, he seems nice and all, but that’s it.” I nudged Jared with my shoulder. “You jealous?”

He flashed me a smile that made my toes curl. “Maybe.”

“Don’t be.” The words slipped out, and I wanted to cover my mouth the instant I said them. I’d meant it as a joke, but it had come out a lot more serious. But he didn’t respond or brush it off with another joke. His eyes searched mine, like he was looking for answers in them.

I dropped my gaze. “We should head back in.”

“Yeah, Kyle’s probably tearing the place apart looking for us.”

He jumped to his feet and reached down to help me up. I slid my hand into his, but as I stood, I stumbled into him a little, still unsteady on my new heels. I braced myself on his chest, our hands still entwined, almost like we were dancing and just as close. My eyes caught on the patch of skin just above the buttons on his shirt, and I itched to undo them and see what was underneath. His free hand rested on the curve of my hip, and my gaze traveled up to his mouth, to lips that begged me to kiss them.

“There you are,” Kyle called from the door to the theater. “I’ve been looking for you two everywhere.”

I jumped back, hoping Kyle hadn’t seen how close we’d been a second ago, and Jared shoved his hands in his pockets. I was equally grateful to Kyle for saving me and annoyed with him for ruining my moment alone with Jared.

“Sorry,” I said. “Jared was just giving me a pep talk before the show.”

Kyle looked back and forth between us, like he didn’t believe that was all there was to it. I’d promised him I wouldn’t get involved with his brother, but I wasn’t doing a very good job of staying away from Jared. No matter how much I tried to fight it, I was attracted to him. Unfortunately, so was every other girl who laid eyes on him.