Page 67 of Verses

Which also looked surgically enhanced.

I wasn’t going to judge, though. The young woman was apparently good at influencing people.

But it left me feeling flat.

After some of the crowd dissipated and the guys left, Wolf took his place behind the bar. “What’s wrong, bird? I expected you to be on cloud nine.”

“Iwas.”

In response, he lifted his dark eyebrows. I knew he’d done it to coax a response out of me, but all it did was remind me of how gorgeous he was.

Stop.I couldn’t have him, so I had to stop torturing myself.

“But I was excited overnothing. Pedro’s new girlfriend was the reason all those people were here. It wasn’t because of us.”

“Oh,” he said, polishing a glass with a small blue towel. “And she must have told them they had to cheer and applaud and act like they enjoyed our music.”

I froze for a moment as his words sank in, and almost like a storm blowing away, I felt my funky mood lift.

“Oh, my God. You’re right.”

“Damn straight I am.”

I frowned, but I knew the smile I hid could still be seen in my eyes. “She was just acting like a promoter.”

“Maybe we could hire her when we get to that point.”

I laughed. “I think Pedro’s paying her plenty, don’t you?”

Putting down the glass, Wolf said, “We need to start thinking about playing real shows.”

“Yeah.”

He stopped moving and didn’t speak again until he had my full attention. “Maybe the bandwillmake it. I don’t know. But I know this: I believe inyou, Hayley Young. And I’ll be with this band as long as you are.”

I sighed and kept my mouth shut. This man sent so many mixed signals, but maybe it was me. Maybe because I wanted him, I read too much into all his words.

That he’d stick around to be part of this band, though, was all I could ever ask of him.

And wewouldfucking make it.

The next afternoonpractice was a bit of a letdown after the night before, but I supposed it kept us all humble. Really, it was better practicing without an audience, because we had more of achance to experiment and make mistakes when the bar just had a few regulars there who’d heard our shit a million times already.

Afterward, when there was no one else in earshot, Wolf said, “I’ve been thinking about it…and I feel like we ended shit on a sour note last Friday.”

Although I was still yearning for the man and feeling a little spurned, I didn’t want anything awkward between us—because Wolf had been right about one thing: hewasa great friend, and I didn’t want to do anything to ruin what we had.

Besides, I hadn’t given up hope yet.

So I lied. “No. We’re good.”

Putting his hands on my upper arms, he looked me squarely in the eyes and said one word. “Hayley.”

He was calling my bluff. How the hell did he know me so well?

The intense way he looked at me stirred up so many emotions inside that I struggled, wanting to look away—but I felt like that would give away my lie.

But I didn’t want to talk about it. If he didn’t want to give us a chance, fine, but why discuss it?

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