Page 40 of Battered Moves

“Since they both figured out they’re overprotective alpha males and it’s easier to keep you safe by working together,” he says. Liv chuckles and shoves Jaxon.

“You know Gunner’s a really nice guy and a good friend to have,” she says, and Jaxon shrugs.

“Sure, whatever. Wanna take a nap on the couch?” he offers.

“No, but I would love a coffee,” Liv replies, making puppy dog eyes at him, and he heads to the kitchen to make her one.

She sets the laptop she was holding on the coffee table and opens it. It’s a nice, new model, and I’m intrigued. I sit beside her.

“I want to show you guys the video I made yesterday from Dirty Velvet,” she says, stretching her neck from side to side.

“I’m gonna get Ryder,” Chase says, walking to the hallway.

“Would you let me?” I ask. “I can connect your laptop to the TV so we have a bigger screen.”

“Sure, here,” she says, smiling at me. She hands me her laptop, and I beam, stroking the top. “Don’t tell me I have competition in the form of a laptop.” She laughs, and I chuckle.

“Not competition, but you have a very pretty laptop, beautiful,” I reply, and she just shrugs.

“I bought it yesterday with the equipment. The guy at the store told me my old one wouldn’t have enough RAM to edit the footage quickly,” she explains, and my brows rise.

“You know your way around laptops and RAM?” I ask.

“Not a bit, but I know that my laptop has to be fast, or I’ll get frustrated, so I let him talk me into buying this one. You can use it if you want to. I don’t need it for anything other than video editing,” she says. I stare blankly at her. “Do I sound spoiled? I’m sorry. I just mean I have my other laptop for my school stuff, and this one was just for this.” She blushes. “I think I’m making it worse. I’ll just stop talking.”

“Don’t worry,” I say with a chuckle. “I’d love to get my hands on this beauty for a while, if you’ll allow it.”

Jaxon returns with Liv’s coffee, and she lets out a satisfied groan as she takes her first sip. Just as she sets the cup on the coffee table, Chase and Ryder come back into the room, and Ryder pulls Liv into his arms and squeezes her tightly.

“Hey, baby, don’t go MIA on me like that again,” he says, his lips hovering near her ear. Liv laughs and leans into his embrace.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I was busy making you famous,” she smiles.

Ryder’s expression softens, and he presses a tender kiss to her lips before sitting on the couch and pulling her onto his lap. As we all settle down, I turn to Liv.

“Ready?” I ask.

She nods, and I press play. The video begins with some wide shots of the band in the band room. The sound quality is top-notch, Ryder’s voice crystal clear. As the second verse begins, the camera smoothly transitions to the side, moving closer to the band members and highlighting their individual talents. The band sounds incredible, and they’ve picked the perfect song to showcase their abilities. The camera zooms out during the bridge before zooming in on Ryder, who sings the first few words of the chorus without the instruments, just his raspy voice. His hands are on the microphone before him while he looks directly at the camera, his light blue eyes intense.

Then the drums come in, and the camera shifts to Tom, who’s giving it his all. His drumsticks are flying, his hair following suit as he throws his head back. Next, Cara starts harmonizing in the background, and the camera focuses solely on her, capturing the emotion on her face as she plays bass and sings with her eyes closed. As Brian begins his guitar solo, his head bobbing to the beat, the camera fixates on his hands, capturing every movement as he pulls the strings before zooming out to show more of him.

Liv’s camera work is incredible, making the band look professional and as though they are part of a big production, when, it was all her work.Just her.

As the video comes to an end, we see Ryder releasing the microphone, causing it to fall, and next is a closeup of it swinging from left to right like a pendulum on its wire. Out of focus are Ryder’s feet as he walks out the frame.I’m left in complete awe.

The room falls silent until Jaxon murmurs a “Holy shit.”

“Well, that was more than worth skipping sleep,” Chase comments with a laugh.

Meanwhile, Ryder is just sitting there with Liv on his lap, staring at the TV and not moving. Liv’s smile slowly fades as she watches him, then she glances at me with a questioning look in her eyes. I open my mouth to say something, but before I can, Ryder abruptly stands up, forcing her to stand with him. He grabs her under her arms and lifts her before turning in circles, laughing uncontrollably, Liv joining him with a few squeals. He sets her back on her feet and starts to pepper her face with kisses.

“We look like fucking professionals!” he exclaims.

“I mean you are now,” she replies with a chuckle. Ryder chuckles as well, pulling her into his arms.

“It takes a bit more than a fucking perfect video for that, baby, but I’m more than happy already. Thank you so much,” he says, thenhe lets go of her before kissing her with her head between his hands, and she smiles into the kiss.

“Ryder,” she says when he releases her. “Did you check the numbers on the video?” He blinks at her, surprised.

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