He cocked his head to the side, obviously doubting my compliment.
“I’m serious, Stetson. Come on, you know me well enough to know that if I didn’t like it, I’d tell you. You wanna know the thing I love the most about it?”
“That you were the inspiration behind it?” He grinned.
“Well, yes. But no. I love that it feels like you, or at least the you that I know, the you that I think you’re trying to share with the world in your next chapter of music. It’s so different than anything I’ve heard you write, and on top of that, it’s relatable. It feels real, raw, and full of emotion.”
“Really?” The skepticism in his voice was heavy. “I just—”
Without thinking, I reached my hand out and rested it on top of his. The tingling sensation from my touch no doubt forced his eyes to look up.
“It’s really good,” I confirmed. “Now, I will say…” I grinned, pulling my hand back to my lap.
“Here she goes. I knew there was something.” He laughed.
“You said you wanted me to be honest, right?”
“Let’s hear it,” he said, motioning for me to continue.
“At the end, when you sayThe best one of my choices was finding strength inside of me?What if instead ofinside ofme, you saidin my own voice? So, it goes more likeAnd looking back through all the noise, the best one of my choices, was finding strength in my own voice?” I offered, anxiously awaiting his response.
“Damn,” he breathed, shaking his head back and forth. “You’ve got a talent for writing songs. Although, I should’veknown simply based on how you perceive everything around you.”
“You sound shocked?” I teased.
“I’m not. I’ve learned the hard way to never doubt you.”
“I like to keep everyone on their toes,” I said. “I guess I’ve just always enjoyed the puzzle of piecing words together in a way that fits, ya know?”
“For sure,” he agreed. “Got any songs up your sleeve?”
“Wouldn’t you love to know…”
I found myself gravitating toward him. Everything around us froze as our eyes danced together, anticipating who would make the next move.
“Well, I’m grateful, and truthfully, I’m just really excited about this next album. So, thank you.”
The buzz of his phone in the front pocket of his jeans startled us both. He pulled it out.
“Shit. I didn’t realize what time it was. I’m sorry, I’ve got to go.”
“What? Now?” I sat up, pushing my back firmly into the couch to catch my breath.
Were we about to kiss? We were definitely about to kiss.
“Yeah,” he said, quickly shoving his guitar back into the thick black case, pretending like he didn’t realize what cosmic shit was spiraling between the two of us. “I’m so sorry.”
“No worries. I helped you with everything you needed, right?”
“And then some,” he said, leaning his big body down to embrace me. “Thanks.”
“Oh,” I mumbled. “Of course.”
On instinct, I wrapped my arms around his upper body. His arms squeezed me a little tighter and his face nuzzled into the space between my neck and collarbone, his mustache two-stepping on my skin.
My eyes fluttered shut, the euphoric sensation overtaking my entire body.
I didn’t want to let go and I wasn’t sure he did either, but before it became obvious, we untangled from each other just as the lights flickered back to life.
