Page 36 of Extended Bridge

Her pixie cut bounces around her head. “I’ve only seen him in action for like a week. Do tell, howcanhe be?”

I wave my hand. “He’s a cocky flirt. Thinks he’s God’s gift.”

Her pierced eyebrow lifts. “Do you agree?”

“What? No! I’m his physical therapist, remember?”

The band runs onstage, with Bennett bringing up the rear. Which works, considering he’s the lead singer and naturally would receive final billing. He greets the crowd again, “Hey there, New York City! You’re still here?”

The audience laughs and cheers.

“Since that’s the case, think we should play another song or two? What do you say Río?”

From behind the drums, Río’s response is a drum roll punctuated by three cymbal crashes.

Bennett throws his head back and laughs. “What Río wants, he gets, right ladies and gentlemen?”

In the middle of the stage, Bennett points to the guitarist. “Do you agree, Coop?” The guitar riff is prompt, echoed by Pierce’s bass.

“Nice way to answer my unasked question, 007!”

Bennett strides over to the keys. “My new man here, Tris, are you up for playing a little bit more?”

The new keyboardist, who sports more than a five o’clock shadow, smiles. “Sure am!”

Bennett executes a three-sixty, causing me to inhale. When he takes a steady step, I exhale. “Then I guess we have no option but for you all toTake a Ride with Us!” UC launches into their recent number one, a hard ballad about love and longing and wishes for the future.

“I like how he did that,” Nese remarks.

My brain short-circuited when Bennett executed his controlled spin. “Did what?”

“Introduce the entire band without making it so obvious. It seemed rather natural.” Her loud laugh would be heard across the room but for the fact the music drowns it out. “As intimate as a conversation among twenty thousand people can be.”

The number boggles the mind. “You definitely have a point. There’s no way on earth I could get in front of that many people.”

“You and me both, sister. It takes a special person.”

Bennett makes it all seem so easy. He crisscrosses the stage, trying to reach every single concertgoer. Even with his groin pull, he puts on a physical show. Unlike Tristan and Río, who are stuck behind their instruments, Bennett’s out front. Coop and Pierce move more freely—and they do, sometimes back-to-back with each other. Other times, like now, Bennett strolls over to Coop as he wails on the guitar.

I note, “They make it look so easy.”

Nese stays by me until the end of the song. “Well, I better go take care of these wet clothes. Are you coming out with us tonight?”

It’s been a long day, filled with too many confessions. I need to regroup, rejigger my anti-Bennett armor, and prepare for tomorrow’s trip down to Philadelphia. “Not tonight. I’m beat.”

“You know where to find me if you change your mind.” Nese disappears behind the black curtains.

Within minutes, the concert draws to a close. From the ceiling, balloons fall. Bennett’s silky voice attacks the last notes. His fist raises into the air while the rest of the band hits their final notes.

Bennett’s wild out there. Uncontrollable. His entire frame lowers as if he’s about to jump high in the air. “Don’t do it.”

Time stands still.

So does my breath.

I will him to keep both feet on the stage.

At the last moment, he punches the air and the song ends.

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