Page 13 of Taste of Surrender
Elliott nodded. “The chicks were fucking hot too.”
“Yeah, it was fun,” Malachi added mildly.
Jesse snorted. “Fun? You walked out of there with a handful of phone numbers and offers to hook up. I’d say it was more than fun for you.”
My body stiffened, and Malachi’s hand squeezed my leg under the table. “It’s not a big deal. Some of them were pretty drunk and would have talked to whoever they saw first.”
“Whatever, man. They were all over you,” Jesse argued.
“Anyway.” Malachi chuckled, but I could tell by the slight grimace on his face when he looked at me, he wasn’t happy about what Jesse said. “Are you heading straight home from here?”
“That’s the plan,” I replied.
“Think I can catch a ride with you? Jesse was going to drop me off before going to Olivia’s, but I’m tired of playing third wheel with them. And since we’re going in the same direction …”
“Yeah, I can take you home.”
We all continued to chat while they finished their meals. When it was time to go, we headed to the parking lot together. Silas hopped into Elliott’s pickup while Olivia and Jesse climbed inside my brother’s car. Once they drove away, Malachi followed me to my ten-year-old Honda Civic.
“I’m glad our little plan worked, and you were able to stop by tonight,” I said as I pulled out of the parking lot.
“Me too. Although your brother wanted to go straight to Olivia’s after our show. Thank goodness she was hungry too.”
“So, she unknowingly helped us sneak around behind her boyfriend’s back. Let’s hope she never figures that out.”
He snorted a laugh. “Yeah. I doubt she would be willing to keep something like that from Jesse.”
The drive to our neighborhood only took a few minutes, and as I pulled up to his house, Malachi turned to face me. “I don’t plan on calling any of the women who gave me their numbers, by the way.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been to your shows before, so I know that happens a lot.”
He grabbed my hand. “It does, but I also don’t want you to think I’m out trying to hook up with a bunch of people. I know things are complicated for us?—”
“You don’t need to explain. I understand how things have to be. Although, it doesn’t mean I like hearing about women throwing themselves at you.”
“Well, I can promise the only person on my mind tonight was you.” He grinned before leaning forward to kiss me.
His hand cupped my cheek, his thumb stroking my jaw as his tongue traced my lips, and I opened for him. Ourmouths moved together as he pulled me closer, and for a few moments, everything else seemed to disappear. There was no overprotective brother or need to hide. It was just Malachi and me giving in to the feelings we could no longer deny.
4
MALACHI
After takinga swig of my fruit punch energy drink, I set the can down on the beat-up wooden coffee table in Jesse’s garage where the guys and I practiced for gigs and just to play. “Let’s kick things off with ‘Sober’,” I said and moved to my microphone.
Jesse’s fingers danced across the strings of his Epiphone Les Paul, Elliott joined in with his Fender, Silas beat his sticks against his set, and I belted out the lyrics to the song by Bad Wolves. I lost myself in the words, closing my eyes as I sang about alcohol addiction from the loved one’s side.
Even though the guys and I dreamed of becoming rock stars, I wasn’t sure if I was down to party non-stop with drugs and alcohol like rock stars were known for. My dad’s father struggled with alcohol addiction and after seeing him lose his family by getting divorced and his kids not wanting contact with him and then losing his job because he was always drunk, I didn’t want that for my future. Sure, Jesse and I snuck a few beers at his parents’ when I’d stayed the night, but it didn’t compare to thefifth of vodka my grandfather drank each night. I didn’t want to be blackout drunk and not remember any point in time. I wanted to remember it all, especially if we became famous.
Still with my eyes closed, I sang the words as I pictured myself up on a stage in an arena filled to capacity. How the lights would shine down on us, and our fans would sing along to the songs we’d written.
As we finished the song, I opened my eyes only to meet those of Jasper’s. I hadn’t heard him walk up the driveway, but as our gazes collided, we both smiled.
“That sounded fantastic,” he praised. “Is that the one you guys are recording forThe Band Showdown?”
“Yeah,” Jesse replied as he set his guitar on its stand. “And I think we’re ready for our virtual audition.”
To try-out for the show, we had to create an account on their website and select a time to do a virtual audition. Then once we recorded a three-minute song during our selected time slot, we would be emailed the results. Well, Jesse would be, because he was handling all that stuff for us.
