Page 14 of Crash & Burn

As I cover up my drums, Mateo finishes wrapping up the microphone cords. Theo and Silas already headed over to the bar.Mia is sitting at the table looking through the photos she took, her brows furrowed and her bottom lip is between her teeth. She looks very invested in whatever is on that little screen on the camera. I watch her as I twirl one of my drumsticks between my fingers.

My line of sight is blocked by snapping fingers in front of my face. I take a step back and drop my drumstick.

“What the hell?” I smack Mateo’s hand from my face.

“What do you mean ‘what the hell?’Why are you staring at Mia?” he whisper-yells to remain out of Mia’s earshot. Not that anything could grab her attention right now. She’s downright mesmerized with whatever she’s looking at on her camera.

“I wasn’t staring,” I whisper back, not even trying to hide the annoyance in my voice.

“What don’t you get about ‘off-limits?’ She is in no place to deal withyou. She has enough going on.”

I bend down to pick up my drumstick that I dropped, and I put both in my back pocket. I try to ignore that insinuation of how me, of all people, would be the worst thing for Mia. I can hear it in Mateo’s voice, and I can’t help but clench my now-empty fists.

Mateo is one of the few to know about mycomplicatedhistory, but he has no right to throw it back in my face.

Even though I just put them in my pocket, I grab my drumsticks again and start twirling one in my fingers just to do something with my hands.

“Don’t worry. I’m not interested in your little sister.” He should be way more worried about Theo and Silas than me. The two of them are perfect examples of men you don’t want anywhere near your little sister. I, on the other hand, have never been interested in charming the random girls who come to our shows into one-night stands, like the other two are.

“Good, because she isn’t going anywhere. I need to keep an eye on her. That means she’s going to be around a lot, and I can’t have you getting distracted, especially over her. Like I said, she has enough going on.”

“Yeah,” I manage to say because I’m not about to admit to Mateo that his little sister is the most distracting person I’ve come across in years, and I’ve spent less than twenty-four hours with her.

“I mean it, Eddie. I barely got her to agree to take pictures for us, when all she used to do was beg for me to get her new camera equipment.”

This grabs my attention more than it should. “Why did she stop?” I ask.

Mateo lets out a sigh and glances over to Mia who is still clicking through her camera. “It’s not my story to tell.”

While I want to know about the unspoken words I witnessed last night, and why she stopped coming to our shows, I can appreciate the way he prioritizes her privacy.

“She’s been through a lot,” he continues. “She’s trying to cope with what happened to her, but she needs a little help. She gave up something she loved because she lost someone. I’m hoping that if I remind her how much she loves photography, she will start seeing that she has her own life to live for.”

Damn.

There is so much going through my head at this revelation about Mia.

Losing someone?

Giving up what she loves?

Living herownlife?

I shake my head and steal a glance at Mia. She finally turned off her camera and started packing up her stuff. “Like I said”—I tear my eyes away from her to look back at her brother—“she’s your little sister. I wouldn’t do that.”

“Thanks, man.” Mateo slaps his hands down on my shoulder before turning to walk over to Mia. He says something to her before they head out the door of the warehouse to walk over to Lenny’s.

No more being distracted by this girl.

Whatever she’s dealing with is enough.

And just like Mateo said, I’m the last thing she needs.

Chapter 6

Mia

Lenny’s is exactly what I would expect for a dive bar in a small town outside of Milwaukee. The lights are dim with neon signs lining the wall. There aren’t a lot of windows, so it almost feels like you’re in someone’s basement. And right now, it’s quiet and empty, aside from Theo and Silas, and the two guys standing behind the bar.

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