Page 107 of Composed
I don’t let myself think as muscle memory guides my thumbs to reply.
Be there in 10
Cole’s sitting on the studio lounge floor when I push the door open.
Humming along to the music playing through his speaker, he taps his pen on his lap in time with the drumbeat, brow furrowed as he stares down at a messily scribbled on piece of paper on the floor.
“Are those lyrics?” I ask, toeing my shoes off before sliding down next to him.
The corner of his mouth quirks up. “Yeah.”
He slides a take-out mug and the wrapped bagel over to me.
I practically salivate as I breathe in the bitter scent of fresh coffee.
Unwrapping the bagel, I moan at the sight of melted, gooey cheese.
“Thank you.” I smile.
“Don’t mention it.” He resumes his tapping, eyes glued to the paper, not even blinking when he casually asks, “How do you feel about revisitingHeart Tornand finishing it?”
Bread sticks in my throat.
Of all the things I expected him to say, bringing up our last song together wasn’t one of them.
I gasp for air, curling my fingers around my neck and forcing the lump down.
“Why?” I wheeze.
“Just wondering.” He brushes his fingers along his jaw. “I think it fits what we’re currently working on.”
I bite into the bagel, avoiding his gaze when he peeks at me from the corner of his eye.
“Thoughts?” he asks.
“Hmm.” My tongue burns as I swallow my coffee.
“Do you still have the original lyrics?”
“Uh-uh.”
“Rixie.” Warm, gentle fingers curl around my wrists. He tugs me sideways until we're face to face, our knees touching. “You’re being weird. Why?”
“Am not.”
His expression blanks. “If you don’t want to, just say that. I’m not gonna be offended. We’re working together, which means we both have to be comfortable with what we’re writing.”
“It’s not that, it’s just…” I duck my gaze and inhale. “I already finished the song.”
“You finished the song?” he echoes. “When?”
The carpet blurs beneath me. “About a year after we broke up.”
Heart Tornwas my swan song in a way—the last thing I wrote before locking my guitar away for good.
“When you played your first stadium gig.”
“Manchester?”
