Ben’s eyebrows went up, and I would’ve given anything to see his eyes from behind those stupid sunglasses.
But then I didn’t need to guess at his reaction as he slowly leaned toward me.
He was going to kiss me.
My heartbeat pounded in my ears.
I eagerly parted my lips.
“Here. This should help with the fire that the salsa started.”
We jolted as Roscoe appeared, shoving biodegradable cups of beer at us.
“They gave me some hassle about buying more than one cup. It would’ve been so much easier in the VIP tent.” Roscoe huffed. “You good with Belgians, Emma?”
I blinked up at Roscoe’s sudden hulking presence then took the beer he held out. “Sure. Sounds good.”
Ben’s eyes were still hidden behind those damn sunglasses as he took a sip of his beer. And I felt like I was the only one saddened by our interruption.
Maybe I’d imagined it.
This was such a weird day. Kinda felt like I’d fallen down the rabbit hole into Wonderland or something.
We wandered away from the beer tent drinking our beers while I finished my crab taco. Ben held out my plate for me so I could dab at the guac with my last few bites. Then he offered a napkin he’d hid somewhere before throwing my empty plate away.
Gah. This guy. So sweet and thoughtful.
“So who are you looking forward to seeing?” Ben asked before he took a swig of his beer.
“Kelly Evers will be playing tomorrow. And I really want to hear Tattered Monarchs. Oh, and Monica Moore. I love her songs.”
“So girl bands or artists? Are there any male acts you want to see?”
I shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind hearing Long Licks or the Tin Gods, but I mostly like female artists.”
“Huh. And no rappers?”
I laughed. “Yeah, no. Not my vibe.” I shrugged. “I like music that speaks to me and bonus points if they use dancers.”
Ben coughed, no doubt regretting even asking the question. I was used to guys dogging my taste of music. Like it was a crime to enjoy a female artist. Like their storytelling abilities were somehow less than because they were women singing about love. Didn’t male artists do the same thing?
But then Ben surprised me.
“Kelly Evers usually puts on a good show. Her dance routines are crazy good. And Monica Moore is pretty fun, too. She’ll be headlining festivals like this in a few years. I don’t think the Monarchs have dancers though.”
I smiled as Ben totally made me rethink my assumptions about him. “They don’t. But I still like their music.”
“I know Kelly and the Monarchs play tomorrow. But I think Monica is on in a few hours. Let me look.” He pulled his phone out and tapped at the screen. “Yeah, she’s on the beach stage at eight tonight. The Tin Gods are on the floating stage tomorrow.”
“Floating stage?”
A huge smile spread across his lips. “You don’t know about the floating stage? Come on, let’s go check it out.”
Ben grabbed my hand and pulled me through the crush of the crowd around us. People laughing and talking near the beer tent, lining up for the food trucks, rushing over to the beach stage we’d left.
But further down the beachline another crowd came into view. And there, only a few feet from the shoreline, was a huge stage floating on the water. It had vertical towers on either side with a canopy overtop. Lights and speakers overhead warred with two large screens on either side of the canopy. There wasn’t an act onstage currently, but a few people scurried around, setting up equipment.
“Wow,” I whispered.
