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“So guys, this is Beth. She’s only woman I’ve ever loved and the person who saved me when I was in a pit that was so dark I couldn’t see a way out. And the first time I kissed her, my whole world changed.” I press my lips to her. It’s just a quick touch, but it hits me square in my chest when I think how close we were to losing this.
I tap out the first few keys and she looks up at me, her eyes wide with surprise and soft with tenderness.
“Oh my God. You’re going to make me cry in front of all these people.”
I press my lips to her ear and cover my mike. “It’s only fair. The songs I wrote about you made them cry, too.” Then, with my girl pressed to my side, my fingers do what they were born to.
I don’t look anywhere but her eyes while I sing the words of the song that’s tattooed all over the memories of our time together. I promise her that between now and our forever, I’ll never take her for granted. That from now on, we don’t go anywhere if it’s not together. That I’ll take care of her as long as she’ll let me.
It’s only when I play the last note, that I realize the stadium is so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.
I’m a crooner. I write and sing emotional songs. But I’ve never really shared more than superficial pieces of myself with my audience. I give them what they come for—great music that lets them get lost for a while. Maybe it was too much to share so publicly.
I turn back to Beth and cover my mic. “You okay?”
She nods. “You’ve never sounded more beautiful than you did just now, Carter. If my heart wasn’t already irrevocably yours, that would have done it.”
Then she leans in, cups the back of my neck and presses a kiss to my mouth. I forget the crowd’s reaction or lack of one instantly.
She loved it. She’s who I was singing for. That’s all I wanted. I cup her waist and slide her across the few inches separating us and kiss her back. That seems to break whatever spell the crowd is under and they erupt, so loud that their roar vibrates across the stage.
Then I remember this is still my job and we’ve got to close the show. She sits beside while we do our outro. Letting the band sign off and thanking the crowd and then we all head backstage where her friends are already waiting.
“I never want this to end,” I whisper against her lips.
“It won’t end. Not even when our bodies fail us. That painting, your music, we’ll live forever through them.”
67
Beth
AfterGlow
We’re lying in the hazy afterglow of blistering orgasms. Both of us drenched in sweat and gasping to catch our breath.
We came back to his house, showered, got into bed and at some point in the early hours of dawn, I woke up to the sweet sucking of his mouth on my breasts. We’ve made love twice since and the sun is just starting to come up.
It’s always been this way between us
I start to drift off to sleep again when he turns on the light and gets out of bed.
I squint as my eyes protest and come up on my elbow.
He’s standing at the window, his back to me, his head pressed to the glass.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m leaving or Berlin tomorrow,” he says, his voice troubled.
“I know, it’s incredible. Your first headliner. It’s amazing.”
He shrugs, presses a palm to the glass, and sighs. I wrap the sheet around myself and go stand next to him. I press my cheek to his arm, and he sighs in relief and drapes an arm over my shoulder and pulls me to him. Yet…I can feel the discontent coming off him waves.
“Carter? What’s wrong?” I nudge him.
“Tonight was amazing.” He sounds like he’s trying to convince himself.
“But…”
