Page 122 of Burning Bridges Duet

“Did you not sleep enough?” I ask, and she shrugs.

“Sure, let’s say ‘not enough,’” she says as we walk into the living room.

Chase and Jaxon stand up when they see her, each pulling her into a hug and kissing her.

“Did you just say you didn’t sleep?” Jaxon grumbles. “You look tired. Gunner told me you guys went to bed after eleven.”

“He sure did,” she says with a smile, and Jaxon frowns at her. “Since when are you guys buddies and texting?” she asks him, and Chase laughs.

“Since they both figured out they’re overprotective alpha males and it’s easier to keep you safe by working together,” he says. Liv chuckles and shoves Jaxon.

“You know Gunner’s a really nice guy and a good friend to have,” she says, and Jaxon shrugs.

“Sure, whatever. Wanna take a nap on the couch?” he offers.

“No, but I would love a coffee,” Liv replies, making puppy dog eyes at him, and he heads to the kitchen to make her one.

She sets the laptop she was holding on the coffee table and opens it. It’s a nice, new model, and I’m intrigued. I sit beside her.

“I want to show you guys the video I made yesterday from Dirty Velvet,” she says, stretching her neck from side to side.

“I’m gonna get Ryder,” Chase says, walking to the hallway.

“Would you let me?” I ask. “I can connect your laptop to the TV so we have a bigger screen.”

“Sure, here,” she says, smiling at me. She hands me her laptop, and I beam, stroking the top. “Don’t tell me I have competition in the form of a laptop.” She laughs, and I chuckle.

“Not competition, but you have a very pretty laptop, beautiful,” I reply, and she just shrugs.

“I bought it yesterday with the equipment. The guy at the store told me my old one wouldn’t have enough RAM to edit the footage quickly,” she explains, and my brows rise.

“You know your way around laptops and RAM?” I ask.

“Not a bit, but I know that my laptop has to be fast, or I’ll get frustrated, so I let him talk me into buying this one. You can use it if you want to. I don’t need it for anything other than video editing,” she says. I stare blankly at her. “Do I sound spoiled? I’m sorry. I just mean I have my other laptop for my school stuff, and this one was just for this.” She blushes. “I think I’m making it worse. I’ll just stop talking.”

“Don’t worry,” I say with a chuckle. “I’d love to get my hands on this beauty for a while, if you’ll allow it.”

Jaxon returns with Liv’s coffee, and she lets out a satisfied groan as she takes her first sip. Just as she sets the cup on the coffee table, Chase and Ryder come back into the room, and Ryder pulls Liv into his arms and squeezes her tightly.

“Hey, baby, don’t go MIA on me like that again,” he says, his lips hovering near her ear. Liv laughs and leans into his embrace.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I was busy making you famous,” she smiles.

Ryder’s expression softens, and he presses a tender kiss to her lips before sitting on the couch and pulling her onto his lap. As we all settle down, I turn to Liv.

“Ready?” I ask.

She nods, and I press play. The video begins with some wide shots of the band in the band room. The sound quality is top-notch, Ryder’s voice crystal clear. As the second verse begins, the camera smoothly transitions to the side, moving closer to the band members and highlighting their individual talents. The band sounds incredible, and they’ve picked the perfect song to showcase their abilities. The camera zooms out during the bridge before zooming in on Ryder, who sings the first few words of the chorus without the instruments, just his raspy voice. His hands are on the microphone before him while he looks directly at the camera, his light blue eyes intense.

Then the drums come in, and the camera shifts to Tom, who’s giving it his all. His drumsticks are flying, his hair following suit as he throws his head back. Next, Cara starts harmonizing in the background, and the camera focuses solely on her, capturing the emotion on her face as she plays bass and sings with her eyes closed. As Brian begins his guitar solo, his head bobbing to the beat, the camera fixates on his hands, capturing every movement as he pulls the strings before zooming out to show more of him.

Liv’s camera work is incredible, making the band look professional and as though they are part of a big production, when, it was all her work. Just her.

As the video comes to an end, we see Ryder releasing the microphone, causing it to fall, and next is a closeup of it swinging from left to right like a pendulum on its wire. Out of focus are Ryder’s feet as he walks out the frame. I’m left in complete awe.

The room falls silent until Jaxon murmurs a “Holy shit.”

“Well, that was more than worth skipping sleep,” Chase comments with a laugh.