Page 31 of For Eva

But the holidays were long gone and a subtle sadness settled over me as I walked across the dining room of El Compadre. I was fully prepared to say a quick hello, then turn around and head back to my car, when Keith slammed his fist on the table.

Christ, what’s Eric done now?

I approached them and offered a weak wave, which only Will acknowledged. Eric sat with his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at Danny, whose elbows were propped on the table, head resting in his hands.

“I gotta go, but you’re being insane, Danny.” Matt popped up from the end of the booth, almost knocking me over. “Shit. Sorry, Eva. Didn’t see you. But maybeyoucan talk some sense into your fucking boyfriend.”

Danny startled and brought his head up, the look on his face leaving no doubt he was surprised by my appearance. Heat crept from my chest up my neck.

Why did I spend a single second fretting about being late, worrying he’d thinkI’dbe the one to forget?

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” he muttered. “We were supposed to be done by now.” His eyes flickered around the booth. “Look, can we just talk about this tomorrow?”

Eric snorted. “Are you out of your goddamn mind?”

“No, we cannot talk about this tomorrow.” Keith leaned into the table, pointing his finger at Danny. “I called in favors and put my ass on the line to get you this gig, and you’re not gonna give me some bullshit reason about not doing it.”

So this isn’t about Eric?

Keith retreated, his eye catching mine as he reached for his drink. “Hey, Eva.”

I drew in a deep breath. “Hi. And bye. Obviously, there’s important business going on here, so I’ll just…” I motioned to the exit with my thumb.

“No, sit,” Keith insisted, scooting closer to Will, who was silently sipping a beer but looking as if he might explode at any moment. “Maybe Matt was right. Maybe youcantalk some sense into this guy.”

Danny huffed and reached for his pack of Marlboros. “Oh, come on, man. Don’t drag her into this.”

Keith ignored him, smiling at me in a way only people skilled at gettingwhatthey wanted, exactlywhenthey wanted, could. “No, we’re obviously interrupting your plans, so we’ll just work through this little issue, then clear out.”

My eyes darted to Danny, who lit his cigarette before mouthingsorryand waving me into the circle.

“Uh, okay,” I said, sliding into the booth beside Keith. “What’s going on?”

Will finally spoke. “Keith got us the opening slot on Black Widow Rising’s tour.”

My eyes widened, and I threw my hand over my mouth to contain the piercing squeal that came from it. Black Widow Rising had been one of my favorite bands growing up and their lead singer, Jesse Trainor, the subject of all my ridiculous teenage fantasies. “What? That’s amazing. But they’re on the road right now, so is this, like, later?”

“They need us in ten days. And yes, itisamazing, isn’t it?” Eric said, shooting Danny a look that hadyou’re a fucking idiotwritten all over it.

I blinked. “Wait, ten days? You’re going on tour in ten days?”

“Their current opening band is rolling off unexpectedly, and they need a replacement ASAP,” Keith explained.

“Wow. Okay, well, it’s short notice and all, but you’ve gotta do it.” I looked at Danny, who chewed his lip and picked at the label on his beer bottle. “Right?”

I rubbed my chest, trying to ease the heaviness that settled over the initial excitement as I thought about him leaving sooner than expected. But I reminded myself this was part of the deal. I’d understood from the get-go this would happen. That this is what Dannywantedto happen.

What Ididn’tunderstand, though, was why Danny was slumped in his seat, looking like a kid whose balloon had just popped.

“It’stooshort notice,” he answered, stubbing out his cigarette. “We need time to make sure we’ve got our shit together. The album isn’t even out yet, and there’s already so much buzz. I don’t wanna do anything to ruin that.”

“Look, Danny,” Keith began, his tone sharpening. “I’m not sure if something got lost in translation, but debut albums don’t just sell themselves. You may be the band everyone’s talking about here in LA, but you need to be that in fucking Iowa and Indiana and North Carolina. And you know how you do that? You go on tour. As soon as you fucking can.”

“We’re going on the road. InMay. That was the plan so we could have time to make sure things are tight. I don’t wanna get out there and give shitty live performances.”

Keith scoffed. “You’re acting like you have a choice here. And I guess you do. But I’m not sticking around, and neither will the label, if you make the wrong one.”

I stared at Danny, willing him to look at me, my eyes pleading with him once he finally did. He’d become even more of a perfectionist about his music since they started making the record, but Matt was right. Hewasbeing insane. This was everything they’d dreamed of, everything they’d worked for.

---