She couldn’t do it all.
Not without something breaking.
And for the first time in her life, Bonnie wasn’t sure she had the strength left to decide what—or who—she was willing to lose.
Chapter Twenty-One
Vic
Marie’s was packed wall-to-wall, the kind of hometown crowd that felt like family and chaos all at once.The lights were low, the air thick with beer and anticipation, and Occupy Yourself was on fire.
Vic sat behind the kit, heart hammering harder than it had in weeks.They were headlining the show, and the late-night energy in the room was electric.Benny was in rare form—voice strong, presence commanding, fully embracing the experience.The new material they’d been workshopping hit the audience like a freight train.Every song felt bigger, heavier, more alive.
Bonnie wasn’t playing with them, the double-edged knife that had turned into, but he knew she’d show at some point.
But Vic’s eyes kept scanning the crowd.
He spotted her halfway through the fourth song.
Bonnie stood near the back, partially hidden in the shadows, a beer in her hand and her eyes locked on him.Not the stage.Not Benny.Him.The moment their gazes met across the smoky room, something raw and undeniable passed between them.
She was there for him.
Vic’s next fill came out harder than it should have, cracking through the room like thunder.Bonnie’s lips curved into a small, dangerous smile.She lifted her beer in a silent toast, and Vic answered by driving the beat even deeper, feeding the fire that had been simmering between them for weeks.
The rest of the set blurred into pure adrenaline.Vic played like a man possessed—powerful, precise, pouring every ounce of frustration, longing, and unresolved need into every strike.Benny caught the shift and rode it, pushing his vocals to match.The crowd lost their minds.
***
Vic barely waited forthe house lights to come up.
He set his sticks in the holder strapped to the post of his throne, jumped off the riser, and cut straight through to the backstage hallway, knowing she’d follow.He didn’t have to wait long.
Bonnie slipped through the door behind him like a shadow.The second it clicked shut, she was in his arms.
Their mouths crashed together in a desperate, bruising kiss.No words.No hesitation.Just weeks of pent-up hunger exploding between them.Vic backed her against the wall, hands sliding under her shirt, gripping her waist hard enough to leave marks.Bonnie moaned into his mouth, fingers digging into his sweat-damp hair, yanking him closer.
