Page 69 of More Than a Spark

As the verse ended, Silas and Axel started up haunting melodies on their guitars while Caleb thumped out a melodic beat on his bass and we all built the song to a slow, thunderous crescendo.

People ran at the stage, packing themselves against it in front of me.

I gazed out at the faces, smiling and wide-eyed. They were here for us. All of them. Holy shit.

Devin scream-sang the next verse, bending sideways, his red hair hanging in his face, giving the audience everything he had. All the while, we played harder, louder.

We stopped for a moment, letting the sound of the guitars reverberate through the speakers. Then Gabe slapped out a string of hits on his drum kit and Axel and Silas jumped in the air.

We played a hard and fast beat with everyone scampering around the stage, Silas twirling with his guitar, the audience jumping up and down, even on the second floor.

My heart soared and my gaze caught on Ryder, standing by the bar on the right with Hazel and the other band wives. Holy fuck, I really could have it all. This was the best night of my life. We owned the place. I looked across the stage.

Arzie stood there, pumping his fist, and banging his head with a couple other people.

My eyes stung as I pounded my fingers on my keys. Our music meant something to people. Maybe we didn’t create it, but we played it our way. And somehow, we touched people.

EIGHTEEN

RYDER

Iwatched in complete fascination at the spectacle of Milo and his band up on stage, playing their hearts out to the frenzied crowd. They played song after song and each one struck a chord with the audience. Milo looked so hot up there, dancing by his keyboard in his jean shorts and dazzling crop top, and he was all mine.

Hazel leaned in. “I had no idea they were so good.” As her gaze met mine, she sipped her wine.

“I know, right?” I stood next to Remy, tapping his fingers on the bar to the beat and smiling, his brown wavy hair falling to the collar of his shirt and past his cheekbones in front. I’d talked to him a little more about his dad while we waited for the band to start. It was obvious it was a tough subject for him.

As the current song ended, Devin stood center stage, panting, then flipped his red bangs off his face. “So, it’s time for a break.”

A few people in the audience booed and one person yelled, “We love you!”

With a chuckle, Devin said, “Yeah, love you, too.” Dipping his head, he kicked at something on the stage. “Anyways, we are Knot Me and we’ll be back. So stick around.” He set the mic on the stand and then walked off the stage with the band.

Remy turned to me. “I guess we should probably go to the green room.”

Another man, who’d been introduced to me as Leo, Axel’s brother, stood next to Remy and said, “Yeah, I think if they came out here right now, they’d get mobbed, and you’d have to fight the guys off Axel.”

“Yeah, fuck that.” Remy scowled. “Come on.” He waved at me and the lot of us, all the band wives plus Hazel and Leo, to follow him.

After winding our way backstage and into the green room, I spied Milo, drinking a beer across from Axel on one of the couches. I strode to him and squeezed in beside him and the arm of the couch. “Got room for me?”

“Always.” Milo edged into my side.

“Dude, you two are so cute together.” Axel beamed at us.

Leo dropped in next to Axel. “So, you finally made it.” He patted Axel’s knee, then sank into the couch.

Remy stepped to the couch, his gaze darting from Axel to Leo and back again. “You going to let me sit by my boyfriend?”

“You sit by him all the time. He’smynow famous brother.” Leo snickered and scooted over to let Remy sit between them.

“I’m not your boyfriend. I’m your life partner. You remember that.” Axel planted a kiss on Remy’s lips.

“Life partner. I like that.” I slapped my fingers over my mouth. Fuck, had I said that out loud? I turned my wide gaze on Milo. Did he hear that?

Milo stared at me, his cheeks growing red. “I uh, like that, too.” His throat dipped as he swallowed, then he drank his beer.

Resting a hand on Milo’s bare and sexy thigh, I returned my focus to the trio sitting across from us. I hadn’t had a chance to get to know them very well yet and I was fast finding these guys were all worth knowing. “So, Leo, what do you do?” I let my gaze run over his brown hair, gelled to be messy and longer on top, and his big brown eyes. He did resemble Axel but had a sophisticated look to him.

---