“Shit yeah!” Mason slung one arm over Lucas’ shoulder and the other over Sindy’s. “We made history. Our first official show, guys!”
Tessa held up a bottle of Cristal that was sitting in an ice bucket on the credenza and a small notecard. “Look, it’s from Immortal Angel.”
Lucas took it from her and popped the cork, which hit the ceiling. The girls shrieked with laughter, and bubbly foam sprayed everyone before it rolled down the side of the bottle and onto the floor. Mason grabbed some glasses and passed them around as Lucas filled them.
“To Prodigy!” Mason raised his glass. “And all the success in the world!
“To Prodigy!” everyone repeated, holding up their glass to commemorate the toast. Hugs were shared along with happy laughter. The automatic hug Lucas gave Sindy, which started out as the same joyous hug he’d given his sister and his best friend, turned serious the moment their bodies touched. It ignited the passion that always fed between them and turned into a smoldering embrace.
“Thank you,” she whispered, still in his arms. “For teaching me everything and putting up with my defiant attitude and know-it-all remarks.”
He leaned back to look at her face, his hands still on her shoulders and hers still on his waist. He wanted to kiss her so badly. But, he restrained himself because they were working through this new phase of their relationship, and he respected that boundary. “I was happy to do it.” He gave her a crooked smile. “And your feisty attitude made it fun.”
He realized Tessa and Mason were quiet, which meant that they were listening to his conversation with Sindy. He nodded his head toward his sister and Mason without taking his eyes off this girl who had captivated him since the first moment he saw her kicking at the sand on the beach. “These two never want to listen to my lessons on theory. It’s nice to have someone who’s interested.”
“I don’t need to read music.” Mason tugged on his ear. “I hear with this. Beats go from my ears to my hands and onto the drums. That’s all I need.” Mason downed his champagne. “Enough talk. Let’s go out and celebrate!”
After three hours in the bar drinking too many shots, Mason took a taxi Uptown while Sindy, Tessa, and Lucas took an Uber to Long Island. The three of them walked up the stairs, still laughing and making too much noise for the late hour. When they reached the second floor, Sindy heard loud music coming from the wing that Tessa and Lucas’ parents occupied, and she stopped and looked toward the sound.
“Don’t ask.” Tessa took Sindy’s arm. “Just keep walking.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Listen to her,” Lucas said. “My parents may be middle-aged and married forever, but they still love each other like they’re teenagers. We learned a long time ago that loud music from their wing means, ‘Do Not Disturb’.”
Sindy’s cheeks flushed red hot. The idea of Tommy Blade, Angel Garcia, and Jessi Blade in the same bed together sent a wave of erotic images through her head and made her body tingle.
“Good night, big brother,” Tessa said as she passed Lucas’ room.
Sindy stopped and smiled softly at Lucas. She wanted to say something, but her brain was too fuzzy from alcohol to think clearly. As she tried to find the right words to thank him for all he taught her, she got lost in his gaze. She could stare at him for hours, hypnotized by his good looks. Performing, followed by a night of drinking, left his blond hair tousled with soft waves. It gave him a wild, bad-boy edge that made her blood race. The sheen of intoxication covered his eyes, but she was the one who was tipsy.
“You did great tonight,” he said, his voice raspy and words slightly slurred. “I’m proud of you.”
“I couldn’t have done it without you, Lucas. I mean that, sincerely. This was the best night of my life.”
“Mine too.”
“Hurry up, Sin!” Tessa called as she rounded the bend in the hallway that led to her suite. “I have two slices of pizza in my fridge, and if you don’t hurry up, I’m going to eat them both.”
“I better go,” she said, reluctantly.
He leaned in and kissed her cheek – just a small peck – but it made her suck in a deep breath and sent a tingle across her skin.
She cupped his jaw in the palm of her hand so his lips remained on her cheek. She knew it was dangerous, but the alcohol clouded her better judgment for a few seconds. She dropped her hand, and he slowly leaned back taking those gorgeous soft lips away from her cheek.
“Goodnight.” She left him there and followed the hallway to Tessa’s room before things went too far. When she got to the turn, she looked back at him. She knew he’d still be there, watching her, and she smiled before disappearing from view.
Tessa was on the couch in her suite, slumped over to one side. “I drank too much.”
“Are you gonna be sick?” Sindy quickly grabbed the wastebasket and brought it to her friend.
“No. I’m going to bed. The pizza is on the counter. The sight of it made me queasy.”
Sindy took Tessa by the arm and made sure she got to her room without falling, where she face-planted onto the bed without bothering to wash up or change her clothes. The pizza on the counter, cold with coagulated cheese, tasted like the best thing in the world. Tessa’s gourmet palate didn’t know what it was missing. Sindy ate both slices.
As she sat on the couch, thinking about everything that happened tonight, the muffled sound of music filtered into the room from down the hall. Lucas was beckoning to her, and she felt the pull like a rope tethered to her waist. She fought it, though, and stayed glued to the sofa, afraid her feet would take her to him if she dared to get up.
She sat there, listening to Lucas’ music, for 25 minutes before she picked up her phone.
SINDY: Is your door open?
She stared at the text message and then backspaced over it, tossed the phone onto the coffee table, and went to sleep.
