Page 117 of What Are The Odds?
“All in good time, Hughesy,” I said, kissing her cheek.
I couldn’t believe I was close to pulling this off. The fact Grace hadn’t stumbled across the event herself was pure luck. The venue wasn’t far from here, the main reason I’d picked the restaurant. Grace walked between Ava and Stella, their arms linked together in an attempt to ward off the cold. I walked ahead with the guys, occasionally looking over my shoulder and catching Grace’s eye. I’d always planned on extending the invite to the final part of the night to the guys. But they’d taken my question about good restaurants in the area as an invitation. Ryan passed around a flask. I took a sip because I was pretty fucking cold myself. Whatever it was, it burnt going down my throat.
“My feet hurt,” Stella complained from behind us. “This is too far to walk.”
Tripp halted. “Want a lift?”
He crouched down, gesturing to his back. Stella jumped on without hesitating.
“Hey, I want one of those,” Ava whined.
Ryan didn’t miss a beat. Once Grace caught up with Will and me, she slipped her fingers through mine. Hers were like ice. I pulled them to my mouth, blowing on them to warm her up.
“Your feet good, Hughesy?” Will asked.
She nodded. “Even if they weren’t, they’re too numb to notice. It’s bloody freezing.”
“We’re not far,” I told her.
Ryan, Tripp, Stella and Ava reached the venue before we did. Mainly because they were racing each other like some messed up horse race. We were definitely in the right place. There was a steady stream of people making their way inside.
“Where are we?” Grace asked, looking up at the doorway.
I stepped in her way, blocking her view. We were so close. There was no need to ruin the surprise now. It was hard to hide the fact it was a gig of some type. Grace seemed excited by that fact alone. Once she realised who was playing, she was going to lose her mind. I’d been fairly confident this was her favourite band. And when her Spotify Wrapped came through the other day, that confirmed it. They were her number one artist. We got drinks then made our way inside. A thick crowd was forming near the front of the stage. We hung back. I’d never been a mosher. Neither had Will. We were too tall. Wherever we stood practically guaranteed nobody behind us would be able to see. When the lights dimmed, the crowd went wild. Four figures moved onto the stage, getting into position. One strummed a guitar. Another hit a drum. Then everything went silent for a moment before the first song begun.
“Is this–”
Grace didn’t need to finish her sentence. A backdrop illuminated the wordsSpacey Jane. Grace squealed, jumping up and down. She was ridiculously happy, and that made me fucking ecstatic. For the first few songs she sang without pause. She knew every single lyric. I knew way more than I realised too, proof she played it non-stop. At one stage Tripp and Ryan took her and the girls deeper into the crowd. A moment later Grace popped up on someone’s shoulders. Then Stella. Then Ava. Grace waved her arms in the air, singing at full strength. She was having so much fun. Mission accomplished. When she eventually came back, she’d tied her hair up and taken off the knit, leaving her in a tight singlet.
“Having fun?” I shouted.
She nodded before moving to stand in front of me. I wrapped my arms around her. Instinctively she relaxed against my chest. When she craned her lips to say something, I moved my ear closer.
“You’re going to get the best thank you sex for this when we get home.”
This day just kept getting better.
59. Worth being late
Grace.
I adjusted the beanie before combing my wavy hair over my shoulders. The Phil-U colours were new to me, but I could totally get around them. I’d stolen the beanie from Levi. Luckily he had more than one. He walked out of the bathroom, stopping to do a double take. His lips pulled up, stretching into a full grin.
“Looks good.”
“Yeah?”
“Big time.”
He came up behind me, arms locking around my shoulders while he nuzzled his lips against my neck. Involuntary goose bumps broke out as I giggled, trying to dodge him. I was extremely ticklish there and he knew it. Laughing, he pulled back.
“I’ve got something else for you.”
He disappeared into his wardrobe, re-emerging holding a folded item of clothing. He seemed nervous, like he’d just handed me a loaded bomb. I wasn’t used to witnessing Levi as anything other than confident.
“What’s this?”
I unfolded it. It was a hockey jersey. The team logo took up the majority of the front, and there was aCover the left breast. Holding it at arm’s length, I turned it around.Hollowaywas printed on the back, above the number20. Levi leant against the wall, anxiously studying me studying the jersey. It took me a moment to realise what was happening.
