Page 42 of Taste of Surrender
“Jasper!” Jesse called as soon as he saw him. “You made it.”
Jasper walked closer, and Jesse hopped off the stage to hug his brother. I felt the urge to do the same, but didn’t. How weird would that be? Would it be weird? It wasn’t as though we’d been in contact the last three and a half years, but I suddenly wanted to feel him in my arms again. Elliott and Silas jumped down too, and greeted Jasper with bro hugs. Maybe it wouldn’t be weird to hug him, but before I could think more about it, Jesse noticed me staring and waved me over.
I forced a smile as I joined them. “Hey, Jasper.”
“Malachi,” he replied with a nod, and then we each took a hesitant step forward and hugged. “Good to see you.”
“Yeah, you too.” I stepped back as though that simple contact would trigger alarm bells, and everyone would know our long-held secret. To avoid any questions, I turned to Savannah, who was standing nearby. “Savannah, this is Jasper, Jesse’s brother.”
She extended her hand. “Nice to meet you, Jasper. I’ve heard great things about your food.”
“Thanks.” He grinned, shaking her hand. “I’m looking forward to cooking for all of you.”
“We’ve got about another hour of rehearsal, and then maybe all of us can go grab a drink?” Jesse suggested, then playfully punched Jasper on the shoulder. “Celebrate you finally being a part of Surrender.”
“Sounds good to me.” Jasper flicked his gaze to me briefly. “Maybe before we go, I can get everyone’s food preferences so I can start planning some menus.”
“Yeah, we can do that. Just hang out for a bit. There are snacks and drinks over there.” Jesse pointed in the direction of the table with various platters from Costco since the caterer fell through and we were waiting for Jasper to arrive.
“All right.” Jasper nodded.
Everyone left, and I stood awkwardly until Jasper said, “Guess we’ll be seeing a lot of each other.”
“Yeah, looks like it.” I was unsure of what else to say.
Just like old times. No, I can’t say that.
Before the silence could last long, Savannah yelled from the stage, “Malachi, we’re ready for our duet!”
I gave Jasper another small, tight smile. “Duty calls. It was good to see you.”
“You too.”
I turned and jogged back to the stage.
“Ready?” Savannah asked as she stood at her mic.
“Always.” I took my place beside her.
The music started, and we began to sing. As our voices intertwined, I couldn’t help but feel the chemistry between us that had ignited when we’d first recorded “Whispers in the Night.” Her hand brushed against mine, and she winked. I leaned in, playing up the song as though we were lovers and our voices rose and fell together in perfect harmony.
Between verses, I caught Jasper watching us, but I didn’t let it distract me. Instead, I focused on Savannah and pretended every word was about her when, really, it was about the man who was now only a few feet away and not several thousands of miles like he used to be.
“My thoughts of you begin to race
Especially when I see your face in every embrace
Every heartbeat, every tear, I keep holding on, wishing you were near
Longing for the moment when you’ll be here”
As the last notes were sung, Savannah laughed softly, leaning closer. “I still can’t get over how amazing you are,” she whispered, her breath tickling my ear. “And I’m not just talking about singing.”
“You’re not so bad yourself,” I replied, our eyes locking for a moment longer than necessary.
“Maybe after drinks with the band, we can pick up from our night together?”
Immediately, I looked around, and my gaze collided with Jasper’s. It wasn’t as though we were anything to each other anymore, but flirting with her and having her ask to hook up while he was nearby felt weird. Felt wrong. However, I still said, “Maybe.”
