Even at my age. Alex grinned to himself.
But when the final competition started, Alex was back to being uneasy. He’d texted Sylvie again, but no response.
So, he tried Carla instead.
“Hey…Alex,” Sylvie’s partner said. “What’s up?”
Alex ducked his head and put up his hand to try and block out the music. “Hi, Carla. Sorry to bother you. Are you and Sylvie still on patrol?”
“No, just finished up. Long day.”
Alex’s heart slowed back to a normal rhythm. “Crazy day? I tried to get ahold of Sylvie but she’s not answering. She’s supposed to meet me at the festival tonight.”
“Yeah, uh, Alex? Don’t expect her tonight.”
And so much for his calm heartbeat. “What’s wrong?”
“Don’t make me spell it out, okay? But she said you’d know.”
Fuck. “Yeah, okay. I know. Look, if you hear from her, or can get in touch—”
“I’ll let her know you’re thinking about her, sure. She’ll appreciate that.”
“Thanks.”
“Alex? It’s hard, I know.”
“Yeah. Former military here. Now I know how it feels to be on the other side.”
Carla chuckled. “You’re all right, Alex. I approve.”
Alex laughed. “Thanks.”
“She’ll be all right.”
“Yeah.”
Alex hung up and made his way to the VIP section. He caught Wolf’s eye and the man waved him on forward. He took his seat just as the competition began. While the music was impressive and he clapped along, most of his mind was with Sylvie.
Brianna came onstage with her fiddle, and that’s when the music got his full attention. Damn, she was good—his friends hadn’t been lying. Alex glanced down the row at Brock, who looked absolutely enraptured as he watched his woman shine. Her family—an uncle, a nephew, and a couple of cousins—cheered louder than the whole crowd put together when she was done.
But not long after that, Wolf, Jake, and Brock looked at their phones, then each other. They stood and Alex tapped Wolf’s arm.
“What’s up, brother?”
“Bat signal from Kyle over at the police substation,” Wolf said. “Gina’s got some info about Glass.”
Alex tried to hide his reaction. As much as he wanted to go with them, he was not on the ops side of the team. He’d been perfectly content with that arrangement right up until now.
He wondered if Sylvie was part of this new development. Maybe this would get wrapped up quickly and Sylvie would be back out of it. All he wanted to do was start his new life with her.
As the banjo-playing contestant took the stage, Alex watched his teammates make their way to the small parking lot behind the stage. He tried to immerse himself in the music again and the excitement of the crowd but found himself fidgeting in his seat like a kid waiting for the final school bell of the day to ring. He checked his phone every time he thought he felt it buzz only to find it was just his imagination. Ghost texts.
Alex sent a text to Kyle asking him if he needed any help, and that the dogs would be ready for anything.
When the last contestant had played, there was a brief intermission and then Rachael stepped up to the mic. Jake was a lucky man—Rachael was gorgeous with her dark hair shining in the stage lights.
“Over the past week, I was privileged to meet and get to know some amazing musicians and watch their talents blossom. The friendships we all made will last a lifetime. Every person on this stage tonight deserves to win.”
