Page 59 of Legendary Rock Star
And then I ran. I’d been stupid and tossed away the best person in my life. I seriously didn’t deserve the second chance I was about to ask for.
17
Phoenix
I checkedmy hair again as Hank drove up in front of my house and parked the limo in my driveway.
Maggie made it sound like she wanted to see me. My pulse zipped. She probably wanted to say goodbye to me in person, but at least I would see her again, one more time.
My doorbell rang. I straightened the collar on the button-down shirt I’d tossed on with my jeans and opened the door.
And there she was. My blonde sweetheart was here, again. And my heart sang.
I flung the door wide open and reached for her. The second our hands met, a spark rushed through me. I hoped I would remember how soft her hands were for the rest of my days. Maybe I needed to write a song about them.
“That was beautiful singing tonight,” I said. “Come in.”
She crossed the threshold and for some reason, it was like I’d won some victory.
“You saw?” she asked.
I closed the door behind her and flipped a light on. She deserved all my attention.
“Phoenix …” she began.
And then I saw tears in her eyes. I reached out and brushed them off her beautiful face and said, “Maggie, don’t cry. Seriously, next week you could be the winner.”
Her face contorted but she stopped sniffling as she said, “That’s not what I’m crying about.”
“What’s going on then? I have the contract that Mark wanted to go over with you,” I said quickly, “It came in while you were on the air. I can get it to show you I meant what I said.”
She nodded and followed me into the studio as she said, “I believe you. It’s why I had to come over.”
I wanted to kiss her. I ached to kiss her, but I didn’t dare. Instead, I put my hands in my pockets to stop myself as I said, “I’m happy. I love you.”
She tilted her head and stared at me with a blank expression as she asked, “Why?”
I went up and down on my toes as I said, “Because you burst into my life and made me see color and find the muse in my soul.”
She licked her lips and said, “No. I mean, that’s sweet, but … I’m having trouble finding the words I want to say.”
Electricity was pulsing in my fingertips. But instead of pulling her to me and kissing her, I blurted out, “We’ve earned over a million dollars on that song already. Once you meet with Mark and sign the contract, you’ll have enough seed money to do whatever you want.”
Her face paled and she stepped back as she said, “No way.”
“He’s looking forward to talking to you once the show ends.” I took out my phone and opened the spreadsheet Mark had sent and scrolled to the bottom with the total. I held it out to her as I said, “It more than covers your costs of coming to L.A. with your parents.”
“Good,” she said.
Then I picked up Mark’s contract from the desk and handed it to her. She took a quick look and handed it back to me without saying anything.
So that wasn’t why she was here. I licked my lips and glanced away. She radiated a goodness I didn’t deserve.
“I signed for a new album,” I said. “I’ll be performing smaller venues so I have time to continue my songwriting career.”
She moved closer to me. I looked down at her black flats as she asked me, “And that’s what you want?”
I wanted to reach for her hands, but I stilled and said, “Yes. I don’t need the crowds to feel complete. I need my music and you.”
