Her jaw clenched. “Very funny.”
Lucas had to tone down his smile. This chick needed to lighten up. She took everything way too seriously.
“I guess I owe you an apology,” she said. “My wires were in the side pocket of my duffle. I found them later that night. They’re expensive, and I didn’t have money for a new set.”
“Don’t worry about it. It wasn’t a big deal.”
“If you two are done playing make up, can we hear some of this amazing guitar playing that Tessa’s been bragging about?” Mason asked.
“Yes,” Sindy answered. “I have a mash-up of my favorite covers that I put together.”
“That’s great,” Lucas said. “But I don’t want to be distracted by a half dozen snippets. Play me something that makes you shine.” He could see she didn’t like the idea by the tick in her jaw. “Pick the song that you have the most fun with and just go wild.”
She paused and thought about it. “OK. But I’m not going to sing because I sing like shit.”
“I don’t want you to sing. I’m listing to what you can do on the axe.”
She started playingNovember Rain, and Lucas wondered why she chose it until she hit the solo and put an incredible spin on it. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back, lost in the twangy notes she created. It was as if she forgot they were in the room for a moment and let the sound of the guitar make love to her. She abruptly fell to her knees and leaned forward, her head almost hitting the floor. Then she arched her back and jutted her chin to the ceiling, all with her eyes closed as her fingers assaulted the Strat.
For a moment, Lucas thought she passed out. That’s how quickly she fell to the floor, except she continued to blow up the song. He watched intently, unable to do more than stare with his mouth open.
Tessa nudged him with her elbow. “I told you.”
“Holy shit,” Mason said. “She’s dynamite. Man, she’s like a female version of you, Lucas. I can’t wait to see what she does with one of our songs.”
Her interpretation ofNovember Rainwas majestic and awe inspiring, but Lucas didn’t want her to change up any of Prodigy’s songs. He wrote the riffs, and they were exactly the way he wanted the songs to sound. He held up his hand so Sindy would stop playing. “That’s enough.”
Sindy snapped back to reality, her mouth bowed into a frown. “You didn’t like it?”
“Like it? That was off the charts.” Lucas gave her a well-deserved compliment.
Mason slowly clapped his hands. “Aces. What made you pick that song?”
“I’m a huge GNR fan.”
“Cool. We may just be offering you a record deal tonight. Let’s see how you handle one of our songs.”
Sindy let out a wave of giddy laughter. “I can’t believe this!”
“This is what I propose,” Lucas said. “We’ll play one of our songs so you can hear the progression. On the second go round, you can add the rhythm. You read music, right?”
Fear glistened in her wide gray eyes. “No. I’m self-taught.”
Lucas slowly blinked, unable to believe that she taught herself to play the guitar with such flair and know-how. “You’ve never had lessons?”
“Never.”
“Oh my God.”
Her eyes darted nervously to Tessa, seeking alliance. “I know what chords are.” She played a G, C, D, and E chord in succession. “But I don’t know what they look like on paper, and I’m not really sure about the names of the chords. But, I’m a quick learner and can pick up melodies by ear very fast.”
Lucas nodded to reassure her. “No problem. I have a BA in music from NYU. I graduated at the top of my class, and I’m an excellent teacher. I’d love to teach you all about music theory.”
Tessa and Mason both groaned, and their heads fell to the side for added drama.
“They’re exaggerating. It’ll be fun.” Lucas had tried to have at-length discussions with Tessa about the elements of music, key signatures, rhythmic notation, and so forth, but she didn’t have the patience. Tessa wanted to play and sing and write lyrics. Lucas loved music theory as much as he loved playing the guitar. Not many people shared the same amount of passion for knowledge the way he did, and he loved passing on the process of making music and why sounds went together. Sindy was a clean slate. Someone who could absorb the wealth of knowledge he possessed about the intricacies of music, and he was excited about sharing that knowledge with her.
Lucas, Mason, and Tessa ran through one of Prodigy’s songs while Sindy watched and listened, riveted on Lucas’ hands and occasionally catching his eye. When they were done, Lucas showed her the chord progression so she could repeat it. She nodded and joined in, so they were both playing the melody. She picked it up, lightening quick. “That was great. You got it.”
