Page 111 of Of Heartbreak and Harmony
When I reach the chorus, the tears welling in Callie’s eyes start to trickle down her cheeks, and I watch her laugh. I wish I could hear it over the music and the crowd.
A few months after ArtFusion, I’d discovered lyrics scribbled in a notebook. A song I’d been writing over the course of the five-night music festival, inspired by a gorgeous woman backlit by glittering flames. We never recorded it, partly because I didn’t want to share it, but we will now. I already talked to the band. “Firebird” will be on the next album, and tonight is its hard launch.
By the second chorus, the crowd is singing along, and Callie is swaying lightly to the music. She’s still crying, but she’s also still smiling, and it makes me want to rush to her. When the last notes fade out, the venue erupts in cheers and whistles and praise, but instead of bowing, I slide the acoustic to my back and walk toward Callie.
With every step toward her, I brace myself for her retreat, but she stays put. She doesn’t move, so when I’m finally within touching distance, I thread my fingers through her hair and bring her lips to mine.
Fuck, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this kiss. About her.About how much I need to feel her mouth on mine. Our tongues tangle greedily, and she doesn’t shove me away. She doesn’t break our kiss. She pulls me closer. She threads her fingers in my hair and tugs, making me groan. My dick aches, and I press my growing erection into her body.
God, I want to fuck her right here. I’d do it on stage in front of everyone. I don’t even fucking care.
“You have to get back out there,” Callie says against my mouth. “The crowd is getting antsy.”
“They can wait.” I bite her lower lip and she laughs, pressing lightly on my chest.
“Go. You’ve got three songs left. I don’t want the media to start saying the show ended early because of me.”
I pull back and smile down at her, rubbing my thumb over her swollen lower lip. “Did you like the song?”
She smirks. “It was okay.”
“It was for you. It was always for you.”
“I know.” Callie smiles softly and presses a kiss to the pad of my thumb. “I remember.”
I kiss her once more, this one quick and chaste before finally stepping back toward the stage. “See you in three songs, Firebird.”
“I’ll be here.”
I hand the acoustic off to a roadie, then leave Callie standing in the wings to walk back to my spot on the stage. We play the rest of our set. We do the wholeleave then returngame for the encores. Then, when the show is finally over, I rush off the stage to find Callie.
I avoid everyone else. I don’t speak to anyone. I don’t look at anyone. The only thing I care about is Callie, but when I find her backstage, my feet slow to a stop, and the high I’d been riding moments earlier rapidly declines.
“Thank you,” she says, giving me a wry grin as she closes the distance between us. “But you know calla lilies are really popular wedding and funeral flowers, right? I never understood why my parents named me after a funeral flower, but I guess it could be worse. They could have named me Glory Bell.”
I narrow my eyes at the bouquet of flowers in her arms, every warning bell in my body sounding loudly. “Where’d you get those?”
“Some roadie brought them to me.” She studies the bouquet with a furrowed brow. “I thought they were from you.”
I shake my head. “No. Is there a note?”
“Yeah...” She plucks a small white card from inside the bouquet and hands it to me. “It doesn’t say who it’s from.”
I take the card from her and look it over. The outside hasCALLA LILY SUNRISE JAMEStyped on it, and the inside just saysFOR YOU. No name. No company. Nothing.
My first thought is that it’s Jonah trying to fuck with me, but the moment my furious eyes land on him, I change my mind. If he’d done this, he’d look smug, but I call out to him anyway.
“Jo. D’you send these to Callie?”
Jonah arches a disinterested brow. It’s all the answer I need, and I quickly take the bouquet and gesture for Damon. When he’s next to me, I hand him the bouquet.
“Someone gave Callie these flowers. I need you to find out who.”
“He, um, he was dressed as a roadie, and he looked like he was about my age. If that helps.”
Damon nods at Callie. “We’re on it.”
When Damon stalks away, Callie turns concerned green eyes on me. “What’s going on?”
