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“Better chorus?”

“Much.”

I nod. “I had some help.”

She smiles, and for a second the noise around us seems farther away than it is.

Then she says, “And The Chain?”

“What about it?”

“You know what.”

“I like the song.”

Her expression tells me she doesn’t believe for a second that’s why we played it. The Chain was the first song she ever asked me to play, back when one knock through the wall felt like progress.

She knows I picked it for her, and her mouth softens into the smallest smile.

I’m still looking at her when someone calls my name from across the room. I glance over, then back at Ruby.

“I should probably go be social.”

“You are evidently the local rock star.”

“I’ve been trying to tell you that.”

She laughs. “Go.”

I do, but the rest of the night I keep finding her again, and again.

Even when I’m answering questions or talking about Europe or promising somebody we’ll play another local show soon, I know where Ruby is. The same way I knew where she was during the set.

Tonight, somehow, the whole room kept narrowing down to her.

Chapter fourteen

ZANDER

By the time the crowd starts thinning out, I've answered enough questions about Europe and the band for one night. I'm still talking to people, but my attention keeps pulling toward the bar.

Ruby's there with Sloane, her leather jacket back on like she's getting ready to leave. Sloane and her are laughing about something, and for a few seconds I completely lose track of the conversation happening in front of me.

I’ve been doing that all night.

Every time I looked out from the stage, my eyes found Ruby somewhere in the crowd. Now the set is over, and clearly that hasn’t changed. The second she moves out of sight, some part of me is already looking for her again.

When I finally get a chance to make my way over, Sloane is slipping her phone into her purse.

"I'm heading out," she tells Ruby. "You ready?"

Ruby starts to answer, and I cut in before I can talk myself out of it. "I can take you home if you want."

She turns toward me.

There's nothing complicated about the offer. We're going to the same place, but it still feels like I just offered more than a ride.

"You sure?" she asks.