Page 46 of Coastal Reflections

“Wine, Miss Distracted,” Penelope said, her eyes dancing mischievously. “Do you want some?”

“Yeah, sounds great.” Michelle smiled, wondering if she was about to get teased about how distracted she was.

Thankfully, Audrey changed the subject right away. “How about we order three pizzas and split them?”

“Love that,” Harper said. “Anybody have super strong feelings?”

“What?” Michelle stammered.

“About the pizza.” Harper chuckled.

“Oh. Yeah. Can we do Hawaiian?” Michelle asked, wondering if she looked as bright-red as she felt.

Their waitress arrived at the table shortly after, and they ordered a Hawaiian pizza, a sausage and green pepper pizza, and a pepperoni and black olives pizza. They chose a bottle of pinot noir, which Penelope said felt ridiculously fancy as a pairing with their greasy, high-school-friendly pizza choices.

They had all just taken the first couple of sips of their wine when a sudden hush came over the restaurant guests. Michelle looked up with a feeling of anticipation, and sure enough, Theo and his band were stepping onto the stage.

“Wow, Theo looks really handsome, doesn’t he?” Penelope said with a gleeful grin, her eyes right on Michelle as if she was only talking to her. “I love that leather jacket he’s wearing.”

Michelle was spared having to comment by the music starting. She felt self-conscious for a few seconds, wondering if all the women at her table thought she had a thing for Theo or something, and then the music swept her away.

Wow, she thought. I guess it really is easy to enjoy Theo’s music when I let myself. They sound amazing.

She closed her eyes, enjoying the sounds, and didn’t even realize their pizza had arrived until Audrey tapped her on the shoulder to ask her what kind of slice she wanted first. The women munched their pizza and sipped their wine while they listened, and around them, the other guests of The Brick Oven seemed to be almost as entranced as Michelle felt.

Almost. She had a feeling that no one was quite as captivated by Theo’s quick-fingered guitar playing as she was.

“This next one is an original song,” Theo said, speaking into the microphone with a precise tone he didn’t normally use. Michelle knew she could have teased him about that if she wanted to, but she found that she had no desire to do so. She held her breath, feeling excited about what the song would be. “The lyrics are mine, and the band helped me out with the tune.”

The band members shook their heads behind him as if to say, “Not really,” and a few people in the audience cheered and whistled.

The song started, and it was more hauntingly beautiful than any of the other songs had been. Michelle felt an ache in her chest that she couldn’t explain. She shut her eyes tightly and listened, not thinking about the pizza on the plate in front of her, or the half-full glass of wine that she’d been enjoying, or the fact that the women around her might notice how moved she was by the music. She listened with her whole being, as if she couldn’t do anything else.

When the song was over, everyone cheered loudly and Theo’s grin was quick and radiant. His eyes traveled over the crowd, and he spotted Michelle sitting in the corner. It seemed as though it was the first moment he’d realized she was there that night, because his expression shifted in kind of a funny way. His smile faded a little but the light in his eyes got brighter.

He announced that the band would play one more song, and as soon as it started, Michelle remembered it from the time she’d paused outside the music studio, listening to Theo’s band play. It was a good song, she thought. It made her feel excited and hopeful and nostalgic all at once.

Once the show ended, Michelle began to squirm. She wanted to see Theo and congratulate him on how wonderful his performance had been. The thought of paying him honest compliments made her jittery, since she didn’t know how he would take it. Would he think she was being sarcastic, unable to accept genuine praise from her after so many years of teasing?

The band members stepped off the stage to wild applause and stepped through a doorway into a back hallway. Michelle tried to listen to everything that Harper, Penelope, and Audrey were saying about the concert, but she kept glancing at the door, wondering when Theo was going to walk back through it.

Should I just go right up to him? she wondered, wishing her palms weren’t sweating so much. Or should I wait and see if he walks up to our table and then talk to him?

Two members of the band stepped through the doorway, and a few seconds later they were followed by one more. Michelle waited for Theo, nibbling her fourth slices of pizza half-heartedly.

When two more minutes had passed and Theo still hadn’t appeared, Michelle stood up abruptly.

“I’m going to use the bathroom,” she announced, a bit louder than perhaps was necessary. “I’ll be right back.”

“Okay,” Audrey said with a smile, and Michelle wondered if her mother suspected that Michelle secretly had other plans.

Michelle walked toward the hallway where the bathrooms were, where she could see two of Theo’s bandmates standing in the doorway. She did her best to sound casual as she stepped up to them.

“Great show,” she said, smiling and hoping they’d forgotten all about the music studio eavesdropping incident. “Where’s Theo?”

“Aw, he had to go home,” said the drum player, who had a big brown beard and was wearing red flannel and looked unmistakably like a lumberjack. “He had something with his family, he said.”

“Oh, okay cool,” Michelle said. “Well, great show.”