perched on the stool, her hands clasped in her lap, her expression carefully neutral. Then she flashed him an encouraging smile and it catapulted him straight back to the Princeton where she’d do this very thing, wait for him on a bar stool off to the side of the stage, smiling encouragement whenever he glanced her way.
It helped, and he willed away the tension holding his muscles rigid, taking one step, another, until he stood in the middle of the stage. He didn’t implode, the roof didn’t fall in and when he reached for the microphone stand, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.
Kody stroked the guitar again, along the neck and frets, lingering over the sound hole, before positioning his fingers to play the first chord. He had no idea what song he’d sing. His goal had been to make it up on the stage and he hadn’t thought much beyond that. But as he plucked at the strings, a familiar melody flowed through him and he found himself humming the first few bars.
Their song, the one he played at every gig for her. Of course it would be, when he needed comforting. And as the lyrics flowed seamlessly with his strumming, a sense of peace enveloped him. His eyes closed as he sung his heart out. And when he played the final chord, his head dropped forwards as exhaustion made him want to curl up in a corner.
He heard Tash’s heels on the floorboards but when he opened his eyes and her boots appeared in his line of vision, he couldn’t look at her. He didn’t want to see pity or gratitude. It would undo him completely.
So he waited while he got his emotions under control. When he raised his head, their gazes locked and the admiration in hers blew him away.
‘You did it.’ She took a step forwards, hesitated, staring at his guitar like she wished it would vanish.
So he made that happen, slipping the strap over his shoulder and propping the guitar to one side. He stepped off the stage and she moved into his arms like it was the most natural thing in the world, her arms wrapped around his neck tight, her face buried in the crook like she used to. They still fit and as he hugged her close, he wished they could somehow recapture the magic of the past.
In that moment, he finally let go of his residual anger towards her.
She’d always been good for him. His rock. His voice of reason. They hadn’t dated for long in terms of time but it had felt like forever when he’d had her by his side, supporting him. Removing any say he might’ve had in having Isla had been another way of shouldering the burden and letting him off. She’d supported his career to the extent she’d given up hers. He had no right judging her.
She was the most beautiful woman he knew, inside and out. When Tash looked at him, he felt like he was invincible and while that was far from the truth, she made him want to be a better man.
He kissed the top of her head and she stilled, the faintest shiver racking her body as she snuggled in closer. His arms tightened, melding her to him in a way that made him wish they were somewhere more private.
As if sensing his thoughts, her fingers weaved through his hair, moving his head away so she could press her mouth to his. The kiss started gently, a tender, repeated grazing of her lips against his, almost teasing.
Kody didn’t want to complicate their relationship and he had no idea if it was the adrenalin coursing through his body at conquering his fear of performance, or the feel of having Tash in his arms so completely, but whatever it was, he wanted more. He deepened the kiss, expecting her to pull away. When she wrapped her leg around his hip and ravaged him back, he had all the answer he needed.
Lifting his mouth from hers, he whispered against the corner of her mouth, ‘Nobody’s coming in here tonight, yeah?’
‘Yeah, we’ve got the place to ourselves,’ she said, desire making her eyes glitter in the semi-darkness. ‘But do we want to do this—’
He silenced her doubts with a scorching kiss that proved exactly how much he wanted her. She responded by pushing him onto the nearest chair and straddling him. Damn she was sexy, writhing in his lap, her hair tumbling