Page 22 of Wylder & the Rising Rockstar
She turned to him, taking in his goofy grin, the shine in his eyes. He’d been unable to write actual lyrics since the truth about Luke came out, about what he did. It hadn’t been long by most standards, but for a guy who lived and breathed music, it had been big.
“I thought you were just working on the instrumentals.”
“I was. But then I started thinking about it. Wylds, nothing that has happened is the end. We’re still only eighteen—“
“Speak for yourself.” She prided herself on being nineteen.
“We have so much ahead of us.”
“Who is this optimistic guy, and what has he done with Logan?” She sort of liked this version. Who was she kidding? She liked every version. When she’d been yelling at Luke, the thought came to her that she’d do anything to keep Logan from hurting. And right now, that meant not ruining this moment by telling him Luke was in Twin Rivers, that he’d been right here the whole time.
She’d tell him. She needed to. But right now, she wanted to let him have this happiness that had been so hard to come by.
Logan handed her the notebook, and she took in the words of the verse and chorus he’d written. When she looked back up at him, insecurity shone in his eyes. She wanted to take all doubt away from him.
Stepping close, she reached up on her toes to press her lips to his. He responded immediately as he always did, taking whatever she was willing to give. But what if she wanted to give more? More than kisses and distractions.
What if she wanted them to have it all?
“The words are perfect, Logan.” She pulled back, his smile replacing the awfulness that was this day, the heaviness brought on by guilt in her heart.
His smile dimmed. “It’s too bad we won’t get to perform them.”
“I thought you didn’t even want to do the show?”
“Yes, butyoudid. So, I would have.” There had to be something deeper to that, something more than friendship. Fear kept the question from rolling off her lips, the lie by omission burning on her tongue.
Whatever they had, he wouldn’t forgive her for not telling him where Luke was, but she knew her dad was right. Luke deserved time—as long as he didn’t take too much.
Her phone buzzed, and she lifted it to see Nicky’s name. He was finally returning her call. She hit ignore. She understood why they’d all lied to her, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt.
Which was exactly how she knew the pain Logan would feel when he found out.
Maybe some kinds of pain were better than others. If he saw Luke now, his twin would push him to the breaking point, forever cracking their relationship. He wasn’t in any shape for reconciliation. But a little more time with her parents and maybe he would be.
At least that was what she told herself to keep the churning in her gut at bay.
7
“Let’s try increasing the tempo here.” Wylder tapped her drumstick against the scribbled sheet music. “Like this.” She hummed the melody she and Logan were working on. He still wasn’t happy with it, and they’d been at it for hours. It was the most fun Wylder could remember having in ages.
“Hum it for me again, I like that part.” Logan erased several notes from the page, rewriting it to reflect the tempo change. “You’re good at this.”
“Hey, don’t sound so surprised.” Wylder drummed her sticks on his knee. “I have done this before, you know.”
“You could do it professionally. We make a great team.”
“We do.” Those pesky ferocious things in her stomach flapped their wings again.
“I’ve never been able to work with another songwriter before, you know. Well, other than Luke.” He laid back on her bed, studying the sheet music with an adorable frown on his face.
No, it’s not adorable. Frowns are not cute, Wylder.Her stomach chose that moment to let out an epic growl. She glanced down at herself and up at Logan. “I forgot to eat dinner.” Her jaw dropped. “I don’t think I’ve ever forgotten a meal before.”
Logan’s shoulder shook with laughter. “The look on your face right now is priceless.” He glanced at the clock on her nightstand. “Dining hall’s closed, but we still have some time left to order a pizza before security closes up for the night.”
“Oh, wait! I have leftover Chinese.” Wylder rushed into the common room to root around in the fridge.
“You have enough for two in there? I’m starving.” Logan patted his belly as he stretched up to reach the doorframe.
