“Dean. He had an idea about some concert out in the desert for Mike next spring. Something to do with that comet.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she pressed a hand to her chest. “That’s a perfect idea. Mike would have loved that.”
Zane nodded, guilt pressing on his lungs. “Yeah, but the logistics would be pretty tough.”
“Babe, you have to get back on that horse. And this would be the perfect way to do it. It’ll be like Mike is with you on stage.” She gave him that sad smile he’d grown tired of seeing. “If you agree to it, the other guys will too, and you all need this, Zane. Kitty said Russ is miserable. And you see Steven when he comes over—he’s like a lost puppy.”
“I don’t think I’m ready for something like that.”
“You’d have months to get ready, which will be good for you. It’ll give you something to focus on other than being sad.”
He lifted a patty, then decided it was cooked through, and took it off the grill. “I’m starving. Let’s eat.”
He could feel her watching him while he loaded up the platter with the meat. After a minute, she said, “I’m going to talk to Kitty. You guys need to do this.”
He felt slightly panicky and did his best to look breezy. “No, it’s better if Russ hears it from me.”
She stared at him from under her pencil thin eyebrows. “Are you actually going to do it or are you just saying you’re going to do it?”
“No, I’m actually going to do it. They probably won’t want to, but I’ll talk to them about it. This week.”
“You sure?”
Giving her a quick kiss on the lips, he said, “Yes, I’m sure. I’ll do it. The whole thing may not happen though, so don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t, okay?”
“This isn’t about me. I just want you to be happy.”
“I am happy,” he answered.
“You’re not. You miss your friend, and you miss playing,” she said, leaning close to him and putting her forehead against his. “I see how upset you are when you think I’m not looking.”
“Ewww! Are you guys going to smooch?” Poppy asked.
They turned to her and Zane said, “Only if you guys don’t get out of that pool right now and dry off for supper.”
This led to a frenzy of splashes while their kids and the dog scrambled onto the pool deck.
Sienna laughed at the sight of them. “Look at that, even Billie doesn’t want to see us smooching.”
“Too bad, dog,” Zane said, grabbing Sienna by the hips and dipping her. He gave her a long kiss on the lips that had all three of their children groaning and covering their eyes.
“Get a room, you two,” Parker said.
“Gross! Do not get a room!” Ivy yelled.
Zane and Sienna grinned at each other, and he murmured to her, “I think we should do exactly that.”
THE CONCERT
CLAUDIA — 10:42 P.M.
On the stage, The Vows are playing the last few songs of the night while pictures of Mike light up the wall of screens behind them. The audience sings along and cries over a man they never met, yet who somehow means so much to them. Above that, the stars sparkle and the comet hums along. All the while, hysteria nips at Claudia’s heels.
Claudia feels herself growing angry. She imagines what she’ll say when she finds Lisa and Elliott. Words like ‘irresponsible’ and ‘unreliable.’ ‘Stupid,’ even, but she knows that would be a mistake.
She stalks from trailer to trailer, calling Lisa’s name in a sharp tone. Zane’s trailer is empty too. She skips Steven’s. He came alone so there would be no one there who would have Elliott.
Where would Lisa have taken him? Was he in the crowd, terrified by all the noise, getting dizzy from the stench of weed?
