Ravi thought for a moment, but in reality, Harvey had already done a whole lot of the stuff that first came to mind. “Let’s see. Sky diving, swimming with sharks… but you’ve done all that. Shame you can’t afford one of those trips into outer space. At least I assume you can’t.”
“Anything that doesn’t involved me putting my life on the line?” Harvey looked over the roof over car, dimple showing as he grinned.
“Um.” Ravi racked his brain. “Maybe you could buy some ridiculously expensive thing that would make the news like a Lamborghini or a helicopter. Or you could start dating someone cool. Another rocker or a movie star. I know! You should date one of those guys from that soap.”
“Rav.”
“Or you could go on one of those reality TV shows, you know where they match you up—”
“Rav, stop,” Harvey said as he rounded the car. “I sure hope you’re joking. I’m not going on any damn TV show and I’m not hooking up with some random actor.” He took Ravi’s hands and squeezed them, a gentle smile on his face. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m already seeing someone, and I’m not interested in seeing what else is out there.”
Ravi felt his face flushing. “The press would be more interested in—”
“I don’t care what the press are interested in.” Harvey pulled him closer. “What I’m interested in is right in front of me.”
“I—” Anything Ravi was going to say was lost when Harvey’s mouth descended on his. Rav lost himself in the kiss. When he was wrapped in Harvey’s arms, everything else fell away and he felt valuable and important, like the most important thing in the world.
When they pulled apart, he smiled knowing he wore a goofy grin, but he couldn’t help it, leaning into Harvey’s hand as it cupped his cheek. “You’re special to me, Rav. So special and don’t you doubt that for a moment.”
“I don’t—”
“Oh, shit.”
Ravi pulled back. “What?”
Harvey was staring over his shoulder. He turned his head and followed Harvey’s line of sight to where a guy with a camera stood across the carpark, the huge white lens of his camera pointed directly at them. He turned back to Harvey.
“Looks like the cat’s out of the bag, Rav. I hope you don’t mind being labelled by the paparazzi as the mystery man spotted in a romantic embrace with Harvey Shaw, lead guitarist of HyperOctane.”
Rav bit his bottom lip, glancing briefly back at the photographer. “Just so long as you don’t mind being caught. This could ruin your chances for that dating show.”
Harvey smirked then pulled him into another hug. “Nothing would make me happier.”
Chapter Twelve
Harvey:On my way home. Need anything?
Harvey grinned at his phone, loving having someone at home waiting for him and the domesticity of the simple text.
Ravi:All good. See you soon.
Bo:Nothing for me.
He sent a thumbs up to them both, started the car and headed out from the city. As he crossed the Anzac Bridge, he felt the tension drain away. He hated the business side of the music industry, much preferring to practice or perform, or work on new material, rather than discussing schedules and merchandising, so the few hours holed up in the inner-city office of the band’s management had sucked big time. The main highlight of the afternoon had been learning of the offer to appear at Rocktoberfest again this year. Harvey thought he’d lost the chance when he missed their last tour, but fate had other ideas and lady luck was shining down on him.
He swung by the bottle shop to pick up a bottle of champagne, because tonight they were celebrating.
A few months ago he would have been out with the boys, but this time he wanted to enjoy the special occasion at home. He wasn’t sure who he was most excited about sharing the news with—Bo because he was a total HyperOctane fanboy, or Ravi who’d been so disappointed on his behalf when he’d missed the last trip to Rocktoberfest and who’d dedicated so much time to looking after him during his recovery.
It didn’t take long to reach home and he was pulling into the garage before he knew it. He hot-tailed it up the apartment and let himself it. As the front door closed, shutting out the rest of the world, he breathed a sigh of relief.Home.
He dumped his stuff on the hall console table and followed the sound of voices down the hall. His stomach fluttered as he stopped in the doorway.
Ravi and Bo were in the kitchen preparing some food. They were laughing, both of them talking non-stop as they leaned over the counter. Soft music played in the background and late afternoon sun filtered through the window. Harvey leaned against the door frame, smiling at the contented scene before him. He loved seeing them so happy.
“You did it!” Bo put an arm around Ravi’s shoulders and pulled him against his side. “See, it’s not that hard after all.”
Ravi looked to Bo. “You’re a good teacher.”
