Page 69 of Love Song, Take Two

Fletcher jumped at the voice behind him and knocked his head against the shelf that held all the cymbals. The sound of them clashing together echoed through the room and he groaned as he turned to glare at Erin, who smiled at him sheepishly. Fletcher didn’t bother trying to steady the cymbals, he nudged Erin out of the room and closed the door, rubbing the top of his head as he blinked at her.

“What are you doing here?”

“Thought I’d spend Christmas in Sirena Beach.”

Fletcher stuck a finger in his ear and wiggled it before opening and closing his mouth, like that would get rid of the ringing in his head. “I’m spending Christmas with Mi…”

“The woman from the photograph, I figured.” Erin grinned and started towards his office, hand shoved deep into her large bag. “Speaking of which…”

He took the phone she held out to him and couldn’t even fight back the smile that stretched across his face when he saw the photograph. It was from the night Micah found out he was Santa, they were standing below mistletoe, arms around each other, grinning like fools in love. The paparazzi had caught Emery in the shot too, but they didn’t get her face, which he was grateful for. The thing that got his attention was how happy both he and Micah looked. The joy was practically blinding.

“So…who is she?”

“Micah George, local. The one that got away.”

Erin sat in his office chair, leaving Fletcher to sit in the uncomfortable ones on the other side. “You mentioned that already.”

“I met her years ago while on tour with The Rescuers. Best night of my life.”

“Groupie?”

“Not even close. She was a fan I pulled out of the crowd and spent the night with.”

Erin watched him curiously, head tilted to the side and he blew out a frustrated breath. Outside of Jack, Soren and Brandy he hadn’t made a lot of close friends during his band years. And when he moved to Sirena Beach, it was hard to connect with people who were already part of friend groups. So when Hank set him up with Erin, Fletcher was happy to realize that the two of them were compatible as friends and not romantic partners. Since then, she’d gotten to know him pretty well and could read him like a book.

Which was why he didn’t startle when she said, “You’re in love with her.”

He nodded, dragging a hand through his hair. “Have been since the night I met her. She’s amazing, E.”

“Do I get to meet her?”

“Sure.”

She arched an eyebrow. “I expected you to protest or make excuses.”

“No point,” he said, using a pencil from the desk to tie his hair up. “She’s important to me and you’re my best friend, so why hide you from each other?”

Her eyes widened and she released a loud cackle. “Best friend?”

“I regret everything.” He groaned, rubbing his temples. Between the clashing of the cymbals still in his ears and the force with which he hit his head, Fletcher was in some amount of pain.

She laughed, swinging her feet onto the table. “Tell me everything about her.”

Fletcher smiled this time, because asking him to talk about Micah was the easiest thing in the world. He could talk about her forever. The flavor of ice cream she preferred, how she tucked her curls behind her ear when she was cooking or the different smiles she had for Emery. He could describe the details of her perfume and the number of freckles she had dusted over her nose.

Instead, he said, “Single mom and she raised the most incredible kid, who has great taste in music, but is tone deaf. Works as a speech therapist with the Haven Clinic, is the strongest woman I’ve ever known.”

“That’s not what I asked, Fletcher. Tell me everything.”

He chuckled, combing a hand through his hair. “She’s got tattoos that her daughter either picked or drew for her, she’s badass and drinks wine like it’s water. Micah is passionate about her kid and the people in her life. She fights me on who the best female rockstar is every single time, she cleans up as she cooks and you know how much I love that. She’s tough as nails and wild in bed.” Clearing his throat, he thought about the fruit roll-up blow job and the fact that she did it once more before they parted ways on Sunday. “She’s also the woman who inspired “Mermaid”,” he added with a shrug when Erin’s eyes widened.

“Holy shit, you have been in love with her forever.”

He smirked and stretched out his arm to drag his thumb over the cerulean mermaid tail. On their first date, Erin had asked about the tattoo and Fletcher told her that it was for a woman who inspired a song many years ago.

“Does she deserve you?”

Frowning, he looked at his friend. “Of course she does.”

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