Logan (Chosen Champions #1) - Macy Blake Page 0,61
strong he has to be to do that? Not a single wobble. Not even Will can do that.”
“Hey! I can too.”
“Nuh-uh. You move around to keep your balance. I’ve seen you do it. Gideon didn’t even budge. Just boop! Up on his hands and then solid as a rock. It was awesome.”
“You should work out with him too, Bails.”
“He’s already offered. Apparently he has plans for me? I don’t even know what I agreed to, but I made him some breakfast muffins, and he made me a workout plan.”
“Sounds like a fair trade.”
They chattered the rest of the way to the theater, and by the time they had everything set up, the performers had begun to arrive. Ashley’s sorority sisters were in charge of the snack booth, and Will’s fraternity had partnered with campus security to provide guards for both the parking lot and the donations box.
Speaking of, Bailey took the sealed envelope Aleron had handed him earlier and put it in the box. He’d wanted his donation to be anonymous. Funny for a guy who threw around money like it had no value to be a softie when it came to donating to an actual good cause.
The only time Bailey wasn’t backstage was for his friends’ group performance. They’d been rehearsing “Seasons of Love” all week, and every single time it brought tears to Bailey’s eyes. If he’d been asked a year before, he wouldn’t have had a clue where he’d be. Certainly not here, with a group of friends and a new boyfriend, and all Logan’s friends.
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. A lot could change in a year. Bailey beamed as they took their bow, then ran backstage to get hugs. Everything had changed, and Bailey couldn’t be happier to see what the next year would bring.
20
Bailey
Bailey bustled around backstage, his cheeks actually hurting from all the smiling he’d done all night. They’d raised nearly twenty thousand dollars to support the victims of the attacks. Considering their last fundraiser hadn’t even managed a quarter of that, Bailey figured they had Aleron to thank for the larger-than-usual amount.
They’d set up a more formal buddy system for summer session students and a special phone line where anyone could call for someone to walk home with. The fraternities and sororities had managed to get volunteers to staff the line for the entire summer. Even the local cops had gotten involved, and Detective Alfred, along with Randy and several other officers, had shown up to support the event.
The outcome meant the work involved with putting on the show on such short notice was totally worth it. Now they had to deal with cleaning up the mess they’d made in the process. Borrowed props for all the individual acts filled both the backstage areas and dressing rooms. Needless to say, they were disaster zones.
While the performers, including all his friends, greeted the audience who’d hung around after the show, Bailey began cleaning up the mess. He’d managed to get most of the loose props put away when Ashley skipped back to him and flung her arms around his neck. She kissed him on the cheek and made a loud smacking noise when she did it.
“Ash! Red lipstick.”
She and Heather had killed a rendition of “Nowadays” from Chicago. Her flapper dress didn’t cover very much, and she’d spent two days finding the perfect shade of red lipstick. He knew, because he’d had to sit in the audience and take pictures for her so she could decide which one looked best onstage.
The things he did for her, especially when he got paid back with a lipstick-stained cheek. Of course, she looked fantastic and had been a hit with the crowd, so it didn’t matter in the end.
She giggled, still on a performance high. “It’s no worse than all the marks Logan leaves all over you.”
He responded by poking her in the ribs. “You’re giddy. It’s cute, but I’ve gotta get this mess cleaned up.”
“We’ll help. Everyone is clearing out. I’ll start putting costumes back in wardrobe.”
“Awesome. I’m going to take the trash out. Would you mind asking the guys to get the rest of the props put away? Will knows where everything goes.”
“On it. We going to the bar after, or are you heading to Logan’s?”
“I told him I was all yours tonight.”
“Uh-huh. You can call him and tell him to come to the bar with us. It’ll be cute watching you drool all over him.”