Ted’s demeanour changed in an instant, the smile firmly back in place as his face brightened.
“Oh! Well then, yes of course! I can’t see a problem with that,” he agreed amiably.
“I beg your pardon?” Kate spluttered, speaking for the first time since she sat down. “What do you mean, ‘yes of course?’ What if I don’t want to?”
She turned her incredulous gaze on me, her eyes blazing at the audacity of the men surrounding her. I stifled a laugh.
“Well we need you and you’ve said yourself, you neverwant to get in the way of our career so we would like your help and will pay you for your time. Now that your boss has agreed, there’s no real reason to say no. Or is there?”
I waited for her to refuse our request, to storm out and never look back. Anticipation filled the air as we wondered what she might do. After several tense beats as the clock ticked on, she blew out an exasperated breath, slumping back in her chair with an irritated expression on her face.
“Doesn’t look like I’ve got much choice does it?” she responded grumpily. I shook my head, chuckling as Benny and Joel let out whoops of excitement.
“Yes! Kate’s coming back!” they sang in unison.
“Only for one song, to help you out and that’s it,” she reminded us firmly, not that anybody took any notice of that. The Plan was working.
We exchanged phone numbers so I could contact her about the sessions.
The first one was scheduled for the next day so I dropped her a message with the details of an address and time as I strolled along the path as we headed back home. I received a thumbs up emoji within seconds and smiled at her attempt at defiance. I could tell she was annoyed at having this sprung on her with no way of saying no, but that had been the whole point. I was asking for her help, offering to pay for her time and Ted was more than happy to let us have her as it meant he could use it as an added selling point when wenext played there. Plus, I’d offered to do the next gig at half price again, much to the chagrin of my band mates.
“Remind me again why we’re losing out on money just so you can get your girlfriend back?” Joel groused, kicking at a pile of small stones on the path in front of him.
“Look, I’ll split my share between you and Benny and do the next gig for free. Alright? That way, you’re not losing out,” I suggested, pausing when Joel came to an abrupt halt, eyeing me incredulously.
“Seriously, that’s how much you want her back?” he questioned.
“You know it is, and I never had her in the first place,” I reminded him gently, making my feet move forwards once more.
“Yeah, only because you were too chicken shit to do anything about it. We’ve got The Plan now! You’ve got us on board. We’re happy to help you but can you please stop making decisions about the money without us? We’re a team, with equal decision rights,” he grumbled.
“You’re right. I’m sorry, Joel. Benny? I apologise to you as well. I made decisions without consulting you both and that’s not right. I promise not to do it anymore. Ok?” I asked, peering at them both. I should’ve thought how my actions would affect them. I didn’t want to let my friends down when they’d stuck by me through thick and thin. Benny patted my arm, hard, with a grin.
“It’s alright you soppy git. Just don’t do it again. Now come on, let’s go grab some grub! I’m starving,” heannounced, striding off ahead of us. I turned to Joel, waiting to see what he said.
“It’s fine. You know I love you but I’ll punch you in the face if you do it again. Understood?” he questioned, a smug grin on his face. I grinned back.
“Understood.”
six
. . .
Kate
I readthrough the message for the hundredth time that I’d received from Luke, making sure I’d come to the right place. The house loomed large in front of me, causing me to crane my neck to peer up at the top of it. I sighed, wondering not for the first time why they would want my help. They must know a whole host of better female singers by now and after the other night with Luke, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’d pushed him away, I realised that, and yet he’d bargained his way back into my life all the same.
I’d spent the last few days agonising over whether I should tell him the truth about the scar and what it meant for me, or if it would be better to keep quiet like I’d originally decided on. Still uncertain of the outcome of all this, I rang the doorbell and squared my shoulders. I could do this. It was only for the one song and then when their summer was up, they would be gone and I’d be on my own again.Except now Luke had confessed he loved me and the way he’d held my hand in Sweet Dreams when negotiating for me to help them had made me question everything.
The door swung open and Joel greeted me with a shout, followed by a bear hug that left my feet swinging in the air. Laughing, I made him put me down as Benny came over to say hi with a wave of his hand. I didn’t see Luke but knew he wouldn’t be far away. The two men led the way into the enormous living room that seemed to have its’ own music room at the far side however, instead of stopping there, we crossed the living room until we came to the glass doors on the opposite side. Sliding them open, Benny and Joel stepped outside so I followed them, curious as to why they were taking me outside. As I took in the scene before me, I let out a small gasp. There were two garden sofas on either side of a fire pit, and fairy lights twinkled as they hung from various vegetation around the garden. I stepped onto the concrete patio where the furniture and fire pit were, noticing the bucket of ice filled with beers inside. I rolled my eyes at that. Nothing had changed. I took a small comfort in that. Benny and Joel flopped down onto one of the sofas, gesturing for me to sit down too. I was about to make my way to the opposite sofa when I heard the glass door behind me sliding open so I turned to see if it was Luke.Smack!I collided with a solid wall. Arms grabbed my shoulders and caused me to stumble backwards a step, although the owner of the arms didn’t let go.
“Are you alright?”
I looked up at Luke, surprised, my hand placed on hischest in a futile attempt to steady myself. I felt the hard muscles under his shirt, the toned outline of his pecs and let out a soft sigh, even as my mind raced to catch up with me.
“I’m fine,” I spluttered, taking another step backwards. “Let’s just get on shall we?”
I stalked over to the sofa and sat down promptly, wishing I could forget how good he’d felt in that brief moment. I watched him make his way over to sit next to me, his mouth twisted into a frown. He was probably wondering what was the matter with me. I was thinking the same myself. Noticing Benny and Joel chuckling out of the corner of my vision, my cheeks flamed and I wanted the ground to swallow me up. Of course, it didn’t.
