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“I don’t know. I know I need to apologize. I need to admit the truth about where my anger came from, not just for her, but for myself. I think it’s the only way I’ll be able to move on, but at the same time, I’m terrified. Why is admitting fault so hard?”
“Our sense of self is tied to our actions. When we do something wrong, our idea of who we are is threatened.”
“That and I’m just handing over ammo to her to make my life a living hell.”
“You think she would use it against you?”
“I don’t know. I held it against her for years. I would deserve anything she throws at me.”
I want to reach out to her, but instead, I clench my hands around the steering wheel.
Her phone dings and she picks it up, thumbs moving across the screen.
“It’s an email from Damon. He sent us one of the tracks he’s finished.” Her eyes brighten. “I can’t believe he already has something done.” She plugs her phone into the USB cord and pushes some buttons.
“One of my songs?”
“Yep. He says he couldn’t sleep, so he started working on it last night.”
The notes fill the car, bright and crisp, the acoustic tenor underscored by surprisingly nimble and fluid melodies.
I barely recognize my own voice. I click on the blinker and pull over to the side of the road, leaning my head back on the seat, amazement flooding through me as the song crests and then ends.
Mindy is vibrating in the seat next to me. She reaches for me, clutching my arm. “This is incredible. You’re incredible. I can’t—I feel like I could burst.”
She jumps out of the car into the rain, jumping up and down on the muddy shoulder, throwing up her hands like a lunatic and getting completely soaked.
I put the car in park and jump out to join her.
For a few minutes, we leap around grabbing onto each other and yelling nonsense to the wind, like a couple of wild children.
When we finally slow down to catch our breath, we’re clutching each other’s hands. Her hair is plastered against her head, water leaking down her neck, a drop disappearing beneath the collar of her sweater. I want to track its movement with my tongue.
She’s beautiful, free, and happy.
I want her.Just like this. Glowing with joy, her face flushed, her eyes bright.
But I can’t have her. So I pull her into my arms while the rain patters on our heads, holding onto each other for a long minute.
With supreme effort, I step away from her. “We should go.”
“I hope Oliver doesn’t mind water all over his seats.”
We climb back in the car. “I can’t wait for the show at Veronica’s next weekend. People are going to freak when they hear you.”
I nod but don’t respond. Partly because there’s no way in hell I can keep my feelings for Mindy at bay—I’m worried I’ll open my mouth and admit how much I want her. And partly due to my nerves of singing in front of a group of strangers in a week.
Sensing my disquiet, Mindy pats my arm.
“It will all be fine. You’ve got this.”
ChapterTwenty-Two
Mindy
“Your terms are very generous. I’ll have my attorney review them and get back to you with any issues. In the meantime, I have a few questions.” Duncan’s speaking voice is deeper than I expected for a lyric tenor, his gaze piercing and serious.
Duncan came to prominence when some short videos he posted online of himself singing pop covers went viral, and he quickly became one of the most followed artists on social media. He signed with C&C Records shortly after that. He already has a gold album and a sold-out tour under his belt.
