All Strings Attached by Randi Mae

Author:Randi Mae [Mae, Randi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2024-05-30T00:00:00+00:00

The reality of on-stage performances was something no novice could imagine.

To start, stage lights were hot. It didn’t take long for it to feel like they were burning holes through Zak’s skin. A person could spend their entire life outside under the sun’s rays and still be struck by how warm it felt under lasers and spotlights.

Then, there was the common point of anxiety: what about the audience? Hundreds—thousands, for the lucky ones—of eyes on the band. Watching every interaction, every movement, every mistake. The nice thing about those searing lights was the way they made all other pressures disappear. People became maroon and navy and violet shadows filling limitless space. And it wasn’t like anyone near the amplifiers could hear a word the concertgoers said anyway.

Zak had been so nervous before her first live performance, at sixteen, she thought she was going into cardiac arrest backstage. But soon after stepping out, she realized how cathartic it could be. It didn’t matter how big the crowd was because it always felt like just her and her guitar up there.

She thought about telling Chase that story before they stepped past the curtains, as she watched his face go blank staring at the band who went before them, but she couldn’t find the words. Then another thought popped into her mind: she didn’t want to color his first experience with her own. She wanted him to go through every emotion, including the nerves and nausea and self-doubt.

This was a moment he would remember forever. It was the moment he would know if he could picture himself in the role once the show was over.

Only he could decide if this was what he wanted his life to be.

So, she reached out and squeezed his arm to remind him of their conversation earlier. To remind him she believed in him, and that she was there.

“¿Que estas haciendo?” What are you doing? Edge shot her an inquisitive look that made her drop her hand.

Just because Chase knew how she felt about him, that didn’t mean she needed to broadcast it to everyone else.

Dallas looked her up and down as well, but nowhere near as perceptively. “By the way, nice dress, Z. You look—”

“Sexy,” Alex interjected with a sharp grin.

“I was going to say bangable, but sure. Same difference.” The highest order of compliment Dallas’s lizard brain could muster, no doubt.

Chase took a deep breath through his nose, while she pretended not to think about the many words he had used to describe the same dress last night.

Zak curled a hand over the sheer panel on her waist. “You’ve known me for over seven years, and I’ve never once looked bangable?”

“Nah.” His nose wrinkled. “‘Cause most of the time you’re giving me that look my mom used to give me when I brought home my report card.”

She scowled.

“Yeah. That one. Hey, what song are we playing again?”

Zak could kill him, but they still needed someone to play the other guitar part, so she punched him instead.

“Ow.” He rubbed his bicep.

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