Page 20 of Before the Encore

Frank eyed them both with interest before asking, “You two ready to listen to the recordings?”

They followed them into the control room, Madison lingering at the back. Despite her best efforts, her gaze kept landing on Bonnie’s backside.

I’m a bum girl. Sue me.

Inside the control room, Evan looked up. “Great. You’re all here. Take a seat.”

Madison sat by Kam, locking her fingers over a knee.

Bonnie’s song played through the speakers, the four of them bobbing their heads to the beat, while Evan chatted over various parts, pausing to explain to Bonnie what layers he planned to add in post. Madison pinned her eyes on the floor, but when Madison’s verse played, her attention drifted to Bonnie on the other side of the room. Did she like it as much as yesterday?

Bonnie kept her eyes closed while she mouthed the lyrics, her foot tapping to the drumbeat. When Evan stopped the track, the room held its breath.

“I love it,” Bonnie said. “It’s better than I imagined.” Her attention flicked to Madison, and she smiled.

Madison nodded back, keeping her excitement hidden under the surface.

Evan spun in his chair. “So, Bonnie, any changes? Anything you’d like to rerecord? Or are you happy to move along to Lipstick Fever’s track?”

“I think we’re all good.”

Frank and Kam cut enthusiastic glances at Madison. This was the moment they were waiting for. But a niggly thought pressed at the back of Madison’s mind.

“I had an idea,” she said, watching her bandmates enthusiasm dwindle into concern. “If that’s okay?” she asked Bonnie.

Bonnie seemed to consider it, gaze assessing, until she relented with a wave of her hand.

Nerves suddenly pricked her at having to voice the proposal in front of the whole room. She blew out a breath. “The pre-chorus after my verse is just my vocals, but I think it would elevate it if we both sang together. The lyrics are about how they feel like ghosts to each other, right? So, I think it would work well if we both lead into the final chorus.”

The beat of silence stretched too long. Madison squeezed her knee tighter.

“Interesting,” Bonnie commented, tapping her fingers. “Evan, can you replay that part again, please?”

A few seconds later, the end of Madison’s verse played through the speakers. When the pre-chorus line started—it feels so strange, ’cos we used to be so close—Bonnie harmonised over the top. Goosebumps rippled over Madison’s inked arms. She crossed them. Without all the filters and magic, her tone was clear and strong. Surprisingly.

“I like it.” Evan bobbed his head, hands busying themselves on the console.

“Me too.” Bonnie shot an appreciative glance in her direction. “Let’s do it.”

Kam and Frank disappeared into the lounge to make fresh coffees, but Madison hung back. Bonnie prepped herself for the booth, stretching, sipping her water, doing some weird breathing stuff with her nostrils. She peeked at Madison with one eye. “Are you waiting for something?”

She shrugged, leaning back against the wooden panels. “An ‘I told you so’, maybe?”

Both eyes pinned her then. “For what?”

“I told you that you could trust me.” She tapped her forehead. “Scout’s honour.”

Bonnie chuckled, closing her eyes again. “You’re distracting me.”

“Sorry.” She let herself linger for a second, staring at Bonnie’s dark lashes, her heart-shaped face, her nostrils flaring as she resumed the weird breathing exercise. Madison stepped away, starting down the hallway.

“Madison.”

Bonnie’s voice stopped her, and she glanced over her shoulder.

“Thanks. The suggestion…it’s good.”

Warmth slipped under Madison’s skin. Their gaze held, shrinking the distance from the other side of the room. She nodded, once, then tore her eyes away, forcing herself to the lounge.