Page 37 of Love is a Lyric
Leaving Chase in the kitchen, she climbed the stairs, wincing when they creaked underneath her. She hadn’t wanted to wake Ben, but she’d forgotten how loud this house was.
Seemed she didn’t have to worry as she heard Ben talking to someone. “Don’t you dare come here.” He paused, probably listening to the person on the other end. “I don’t need a meeting or an intervention or whatever you want to do.” More silence. “Well, tell him tough. I don’t care if this is the kind of thing the group is for. Let me handle this on my own.” He sighed.
The floorboard under Piper creaked, and she cursed the old house as Ben stopped talking.
“Look, I’ve got to go.” He hung up. “You can come in, Piper.”
She pushed open the door, almost laughing at the sight of him lounging on the small bed. “Erm, I didn’t want to wake you.”
“Well, Dax already did that.”
“Dax…” Her eyes widened. “That was Dax Nelson on the phone.”
Alarm flashed across his face like he hadn’t been allowed to say that. Piper ignored it and walked further into the room. “How did I not know you knew him? I mean, of course you do. He’s with your label, and Melanie works for him too, but you really should have told me so I could ask a million questions.”
“Piper—”
“I mean, his music is completely swoon-worthy. Is he swoony in person? I’ll bet he is. But why doesn’t he let anyone know what he looks like?” Her eyes widened as realization struck her.
“Piper—”
“Wait… YOU must know what he looks like. Can you like draw me a picture or something?”
He jumped from the bed and gripped her arms. “Stop.” A smile curved his lips as he fought back a laugh. “I never thought I’d see the day Piper Hayes went fangirl.”
“It’s just…” She looked into his clear blue eyes, almost forgetting what they were talking about. “Dax Nelson.”
“I’ll tell you something no other Dax fan knows.” He leaned closer. “Dax has brown hair and glasses.”
“Kind of like you,” she whispered.
“And what about my music? Do you find it swoony?”
She shook her head with a smile. “My sister wrote the lyrics.” The lie burned. “Finding them swoony would be weird.”
His grin widened.
“It’s nice to see you smile. I missed that.”
She regretted her words instantly as his smile dropped, and he stepped back. Eyeing the rumpled bed and plate of food on the ground next to it, she looked to him in question. “Have you been sleeping all day?”
“No.” He rubbed his eyes. “I’ve mostly been lying here trying to make myself move when it all seems so pointless.”
“None of it is pointless, Ben.” She set the bags on the bed. “Look, Melanie wants you to become a hermit and stay away from the press, but I think you need to get out of this house. But… you can’t go walking around in your designer clothes Quinn bought specifically for Florida.”
“So, what am I going to wear?” He peeked into the bags.
“What twenty-year-old Ben Evans would have worn before he had to go get all fancy.”
“I didn’t get fancy,” he grumbled.
She lifted one eyebrow. “Did you fly here in first class or coach?”
“Point taken.” He pulled out the jeans and t-shirts before getting to the shorts. “Melanie won’t like this.”
“All right, Benji.” She used his family nickname when she meant business. “This is what’s going to happen. You will not heal from this if every decision is about the music or about your job. I don’t want you answering Melanie’s calls.”
His jaw dropped open. “Do you realize how mad she’ll be?”
