Page 34 of Falling Faster
"Hey, Ty. I have photos of Craig from our early gigs." Cody waves his phone. "Come see."
"I can't pass that up." With a kiss to my cheek, he slips from my arms, then joins Cody on the chair.
Cody's album of band pics is huge and will take them some time to look through. I take the opportunity to move to the bar and order another drink.
Devon joins me and puts in his order, then leans on the bar, bumping his shoulder into mine. "Ty seems like a good guy. I'm happy for you."
My gaze lingers on my blond-haired man. "Being with him is like being given something I've been yearning for. But we live on opposite sides of the country. It's still early."
"Mmm hmm." Devon bumps my shoulder again. "I saw the way you lit up when he arrived. How you are with him. That's something special."
"It is. He is. But I don't know where anything will lead."
"Sorry again about interrupting your reunion. If we'd known, we wouldn't have shown up tonight."
"Don't worry about it. Good of you guys to come out." I pause while the bartender sets out two new bottles and clears away the empties. "It's a great surprise, Dev. I'm happy to see you."
"You performing with The Fury is a big deal." He taps his bottle against mine. "We wanted to support you."
Leaning an elbow on the bar, I turn to face the room. "I wasn't sure how I'd feel, being back up there, playing live for people night after night. If I'd want it again. I'm happy to be helping out my friends. It's fun. Exhausting too. But it's not the same as having the three of you up there beside me."
Wistfulness mists through his gaze. He takes a long pull of his beer. "I miss that too. Sometimes, I wonder what would've happened if I hadn't gone back to Buffalo."
"I do, too." I hate that Cody's dad got sick, and that Devon ever met his evil ex-boyfriend. "You did what you thought was right for you at the time."
"I let a broken heart chase me out of town. That was a stupid decision." Anger curls through his words and flashes through his features. "He wasn't worth it."
Surprise holds me still for a moment. Devon never talks about this. I hate that he has regrets. "I didn't know you felt that way."
His scrutiny shifts to members of The Fury, and thenflicks to Patrick and Cody. With a sigh, he collapses onto the barstool behind him. "Yeah, well I've been thinking about a lot since I turned thirty. I mean, I'm happy enough doing what I do, with my life the way it is. I love that we still exist as a band, even if we've been limited in what we can produce and when we can play together. But I can't help wondering about how things could have been. About what could've happened if I'd stayed in LA. If we all had."
"Me too." Studying him, I down another mouthful of beer. So many nights on this tour, I've looked at The Fury and wonderedif onlyabout my friends. "You could move back."
"We're not eighteen anymore." His tone is contemplative, and that wistfulness is so heavy it swamps me. "We're thirty. We have commitments and responsibilities."
If I can shift that regret into hope, I will. "So what? If you're still hungry for something, let's make it happen. Hell, we all need a shakeup. We can figure out a way to record more often, get more songs out faster. Play some gigs."
The beginning of a smile curves his lips and light shines in his brown eyes. "Yeah? You mean it?"
"I do. I promise. We'll talk to Cody and Patrick this weekend and make plans."
"Thanks, Craig." His throat works for a moment, then Devon puts his hand on my shoulder and gently squeezes. "I’ll let you get back to Ty."
I catch hold of his arm before he can move away. "Dev, we’ll make something good happen with the band."
"Playing together tomorrow for The Fury is a good start." Laughing, he rubs the back of his neck. "No pressure. Just playing for one of the biggest bands in rock."
"We're playingwiththem, man, not just for them. You're gonna blow them away."
He smiles at that. "Whatever happens, we're in it together."
We head back to the group. Brendan waves Devon over and Dev goes to him with a grin. Before my friends board their plane on Monday night, I'll make sure the four of us have a talk. If Devon's been upset, maybe Patrick and Cody have, too. I know I've been missing them. And this time on tour has shown me how much.
Ty stands from his perch on the chair, laughing with Cody, and turns his gaze my way. "I saw a lot of pictures. Your blond phase. The leather phase. The long hair phase. I liked them all."
Groaning, I wrap my arm around his waist. "The long hair phase wasn't my best look."
"I thought it was sexy." He leans in and kisses me and slides his hand through my hair. "Though, I love the way you look now."
