I finished the last note, and the crowd went nuts. It was a Monday night, so I didn’t think anyone would show up to hear us play, even in a larger city, but the place was packed, and the men in particular were going crazy for me–whistling and yelling for more.
A drunk guy wandered up close to the stage. “Play a song for me, sweetheart.” He ducked his head like he was trying to look up my denim mini skirt.
A note of anxiety pinched under my ribs, and I flubbed the next line and had to restart. This could go badly. Would Boone start a fight? Would he blame me for this guy’s behavior? How ugly would this get?
I had at least a dozen bad memories of scenes just like this with Marty getting nasty when I drew attention from men. I remembered the event itself and then the repercussions for days afterwards.
Boone was already on his feet, his large form moving with cat-like grace. “Stay away from my girl, buddy.” He hauled the guy back with a heavy hand on his shoulder, rotating him, and giving him a shove to send back in the direction he’d come from.
When Boone turned back around after ensuring the guy wouldn’t bother me any longer, he winked at me.
Winked.
He wasn’t mad. He had my back. Warmth spread through my chest. I sighed, letting out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.
My wolf-man was protective. Possessive, even. But he didn’t seem to blame me for the attention I got, the way Marty had.
I finished up the song with a renewed feeling of… freedom and bowed my head to their applause. I couldn’t stop grinning. God, it felt amazing! “Thank you all so much. Now, I think it’s time to turn the stage over to the Barn Cats,” I said.
“Sing another song!” some guy yelled from the back.
“One more song,” another began to chant. Others joined in and even added feet stomping to their eagerness.
When I realized that even Natalie and the rest of the Barn Cats were chanting, I laughed and ran the guitar pick down the strings. “You want another song?” I asked, smiling.
“Yes!” they shouted and clapped. Some whistled.
Wow. This kind of attention could go to my head fast. The response was insane.
I met Boone’s eye, and he smiled at me, nodding in encouragement.
“Okay. This is a song I wrote about friendship and fun,” I said, starting to strum at a lively pace.
Natalie cheered because she knew which one I was going to sing. It was a party song I wrote back when she and I were in college about being out with friends, and it fit the bar vibe perfectly.
Riley held her phone up, taking photos or filming me as I started in. By the time I finished, I had half the bar singing along with the chorus, Natalie leading them because she knew the song inside and out.
Everyone was on their feet. The crowd cheered, and I thanked them, waving, then walked off the stage.
Boone was there to take my guitar and wrap me up in a giant hug. “That was amazing, baby.” The noise was loud, but I heard him over it. “Truly. You’re next-level.”
The adrenaline was buzzing, I felt so good. Still, I was always critical of myself. “Well, I messed up a few times–”
“You were perfect,” he said firmly. “Nobody heard any mess ups. I know I didn’t. And if they did, nobody cared because you were fucking perfect.”
I lost my breath in his praise. Tears filled my eyes. Good tears. I wiped them away and smiled up at him.
Boone was so different from Marty. My ex used to point out all the things I could’ve done better. All the mistakes I made. He’d acted like he was my manager, and he was going to coach me into improving. I realized, suddenly, that we’d never been equals. Marty had seen himself as better than me. Older, wiser, smarter. He was going to “help” me with my career. But actually, all he’d done was crush all the spirit right out of me.
Boone was a partner. He might be a heck of a lot smarter than I was. He was definitely stronger. Faster. And superhuman. But he didn’t act like he was better. He’d let me tie him up. Set rules for him. He wanted me to feel safe with him just as I wanted him to just be him without having to be cautious around me.
“Everybody here just fell madly in love with you,” Boone said, kissing me full on the lips. “Including me, and I was already fucking head over heels.”
If I’d been a light, I’d glow so bright you’d need sunglasses.
The Barn Cat members passed me to climb on the stage, congratulating me.
“That’s going to be an impossible act to follow,” one of them said. “Natalie, why didn’t we open for her?”
