Page 124 of The Song We Lost

When he slides into the next line he tips his chin toward me.

My turn.

“Maybe I got tired of waiting

For a ghost to come back home…”

The words hit differently out loud. Not sad or angry. Just… done.

Rhett grins when we hit the pre-chorus. The energy in the room lifts like a switch flipped somewhere.

Then the chorus hits.

“So turn it up, let the speakers break

Let the midnight make its mistakes…”

I step closer to the mic without thinking. Rhett leans in too. His baby blues are sparkling as winks at me. The sound fills the room. An energy crackling.

“I’m a little louder, a little unchained

A little reckless in the best damn way…”

Something in me shakes loose.

Maybe it’s the candles, or the ridiculous grin Rhett keeps throwing at me. Could be the cider I stole from Noah. Maybe it’s the fact that for the first time in months I’m not sitting in my heartbreak.

I laugh during a musical break. A real one. The kind that bubbles out before I can stop it.

Rhett points at me. “You’re dancing.”

“I am not.” I huff.

“You absolutely are.”

He’s right, my hips sway a little as the guitar keeps rolling. Behind the glass Jackson straightens suddenly.

“Tim,” he says quietly.

Tim looks up from the board. “Yeah?”

“Keep the giggle.”

Tim grins. “Oh I am.”

The bridge rolls in and Rhett turns toward me again.

“Let the highway lights burn through the dark…”

I step in closer, I can feel the heat coming off of him.

“Let the world hear the beat of a healing heart…”

The harmony lands between us perfectly. When the final chorus hits we both lean into the mic like we’re sharing the same breath.

“I’m a little louder, a little unchained

A little reckless in the best damn way…”