much, it’s like carrying around a sack of flour all day.”
I watched the baby’s face change from little pouts to gaseous grins. “He’s precious.”
She fell back into her chair. “Thanks. Luckily, he takes after Adam.”
Adam and Eden had the exact same coloring—dark hair, fair skin—so from where I sat, the baby took after them both. “He’s going to be a little heartbreaker.”
She smiled. “I hope not.”
Sipping on my beer, I peeked outside to where the real heartbreaker stacked burgers onto a plate, laughing at whatever Shane was saying to him. Shane had such an open expression, good-natured, honest. I loved that he was laughing at his own story. What could they have been talking about?
“You’re handling this all really well. Have you spent much time around musicians?”
I turned my phone to airplane mode and dropped it into my purse, determined to experience the present. “Not really. I spend a lot of time listening to musicians.”
“My best friend fell apart when she first met Adam.”
“How so?”
The ghost of a smile crossed her lips. “She gushed all over him and made him take pictures with her. She posted them all over Facebook.”
“Oh.” I laughed a little nervously, hoping not to show her the cracks in my facade.
“You’re not losing your shit, so I figured either you’re not much of a fan or else you’ve spent some time among musicians. And since it’s not the latter—”
“Actually, no. I’m a fan. I’m a huge fan,” I confessed. “I’m just not that kind of fan, I guess.”
Her eyes narrowed. “What kind of fan?”
“I’m in it for the music.”
“Oh, one of those.” She snorted. “I’ve read comments like that on the message boards. ‘True fans’ I think they called it.”
My stomach twisted. Had I said too much? “You read the message boards?”
She shot a glance at the baby. “I don’t have time for that. I have though. Curiosity.”
I wondered what that would be like, if I would want to read about myself. “That must be weird.”
“Most people are well meaning. The fans are opinionated, but supportive of Adam.”
“And you? How do they treat you?” Not that I didn’t know the answer. I wanted to hear her point of view.
She straightened the placemats within her reach. “Considering the circumstances, they’re forgiven for the occasional barb. Plus, there’s a forum admin who has been amazing at keeping things about me pretty quiet. I appreciate that.”
I couldn’t make my eyelids stop blinking in overdrive. She couldn’t know who she was talking to. It was pure coincidence. I forced myself to remain calm. “How nice.”
“It is. I’ve seen what goes on in Micah’s fan forum, and it can get pretty ugly.”
That was an understatement. I knew the admin, Jaclyn, aka State of the Absurd. She didn’t keep her fans to the same level of decorum as I did. Her main rule was Don’t get me sued. Otherwise, the board was a complete free-for-all.
She chortled. “But it fits Micah somehow.”
Exactly how I was supposed to respond to Eden’s comment on this topic eluded me, and I absently reached over and touched a heavy book sitting beside her laptop. My eyes focused on the title. “Molecular and cell biology?”
Her face lit up. “It’s for a class I’m taking.”
“You’re in school?” Why was this new information?
“Yeah. I got my degree in biology. I actually used to work in the field, but I had the wrong job, and I wanted to give music a shot, so I just dropped out. But lately, I miss it.” She sat up a little taller. “And then I met Jo and wished I could find a way to help her, and it all came together. So, I’ve gone back to grad school.” She said the last like an announcement, like she was still coming to terms with the decision.
“I didn’t know you—” Shit.
Her head tilted. “Didn’t know what?”
I thought fast to cover the near confession that I’d have any reason to be aware of her scholarly pursuits. “That you could juggle school with a newborn.”
That was plausible.
“Well, it’s easier than touring with kids. And just between you and me—” she leaned closer “—my music career ain’t going so hot. Right now, I’m taking a few classes at night. Plus I have Adam here, so—”
“Night classes?” Her solution to her complicated life struck me as so genius yet practical that the revelation about her music career hit me like a secondary shock wave. I wondered if it was too late to back up and give her some sympathy. And