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“I like you, Connor. You play beautifully. Do you have an agent?”
“Huh?” he asked, shaking his head. “No, no agent. I don’t even play professionally. I’m just messing around.”
“I own the café here in the pub and a couple of others on the Goldie. I need some entertainment a few days a week for all three of them. If you’re interested—and if you can—I’d love for you to come and play there as a practice run.”Is she kidding?That path, the one he thought he’d seen, suddenly had a fork in it, one that he’d never dreamed of exploring. Music had always been his passion, had always been a fundamental part of him, but it’d never been something he thought he coulddo.
“I’d love to.” He beamed at the realization that he might not have to follow in his father’s steps and become a mechanic. “Yeah, I’m interested. Definitely.” They sat and spoke for half an hour, and she handed him a card.
“See you Thursday. I’m not promising anything permanent, but if you do well, then we’ll look at having you play at all three.”
“Thanks, Tracey. Can’t wait.”
Connor got on the road and headed straight home. He couldn’t wait to tell Levi and Katy. Excitement and adrenaline coursed through his veins. His head still buzzed and he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face even if he tried. He let himself in and jogged up the hallway, calling out, “Lee, Cupcake,” as he went. He spotted his friend slouched on the couch, and Connor’s grin left in a rush when Levi looked up at him. Sadness permeated the air between them.
“You haven’t lost it, mate. First date, I’m impressed.”
“It’s not what you think,” Connor replied. He didn’t want to admit he hadn’t sealed the deal with a girl who was so obviously wanting to, but he couldn’t lie either. That wasn’t him. Levi’s derisive snort and the way he stood and walked away from Connor had him on the defensive. What did it matter even if he’d slept with Miranda? They were both consenting adults. Sex was sex. It wasn’t a bad thing, something they should be ashamed of, even if they had slept together. Con’s news went by the wayside as Levi slammed his mug down in the sink. Connor wasn’t going there—Lee needed to cool off or they’d end up duking it out. Connor spun on his heel and walked back the way he came, heading straight for the bedroom he was staying in.
“Hi,” Katy murmured from her doorway as he turned the knob to his room.
“Hi, Katy. I’m going to crash unless you need me urgently.”
“No, go and catch up on some sleep, Casanova.” The smile she flashed looked strained, something Connor could identify with after Levi’s outburst. He gave her a weak smile back and closed the door, but a knock soon followed.
“I’m in jocks, but you can come in.” He looked down at his boxer shorts making sure they weren’t threadbare as Katy opened the door a crack.
“I know I said I didn’t need you, but can we talk?”
“Sure, Cupcake, what’s up? Apart from the ice-cold reception happening in the lounge room.”
“He’s upset. Give him time to cool off, and he’ll be back to normal. He’s just a little tense.” She sat down on his bed and sighed, looking as defeated as her man in the other room.
Connor sat next to her and grasped her hand. It was small in his, soft and warm. He breathed in the scent of chocolate and vanilla that lingered around her—like it got under her skin at work and had become a part of her. “Katy, if this is about me staying here, it’s no big deal, I’ll just move out. I’m not gonna get offended if you guys need your space.”
“No, boo. It’s not you. You don’t need to move out.” Katy smiled at him, this one more genuine than the last.
“Are you guys okay? I’m worried about you.”
“We’re good. We’ve both been a little off. Things are changing for us, not in a bad way I don’t think, but he’s struggling a little with it.”
“You wanna talk about it?”
“No, I’m okay. We’re still happy.”
“I’m always there for you guys. You know that, right?”
“I do. And don’t worry, he’ll come around when he’s ready. I’ll do the same one day.” She elbowed Connor affectionately. “But, I need your advice. Lee’s birthday’s coming up soon. I’ve organized a party for him, but I wanted to give him something really special too. He’s done so much for me, and I wanted to... I dunno, do something for him that he’ll never forget, but I have no idea what to get him.”
“I’ve been thinking about it too. I wanna do up the Harley he has in pieces in the garage. From what I could see, it looks like he has most of the bike in there. If you bought the rest of the parts, we could give it to him. He might not even notice the parts are gone if I can get some old boxes that we can stack up in their place. It could be a surprise, but it probably won’t be finished in time for his birthday.”
Katy’s eyes lit up, and she threw her arms around him. “You’d do that for him?”
“I’ll get help from Kevin at the shop.” Connor shrugged. He wouldn’t do the final assembly—he’d want Levi to do that with him—but he’d do what he could for his friend. “I’ve never worked on a bike before, but there’s a guy in there who’s a bike mechanic.”
“So if we worked on that—well, you work on it and I supply any parts you’re short—and I got him something else, do you think that’d be good?”
“I do. Whatcha gonna get?”
“What about... I dunno. I wanted something that he’s never experienced before. Everything I think of, he’s done for work.”
