Page 15 of Hope & Harmony

The way the energy changes when she walks into a room.

“It doesn’t always come easy,” I lie, hoping to make her feel better.

Madeline’s lips flatten. “You’re a bad liar, Lucca.”

I give her a smile, knowing I’ve been caught.

“How do you do it?” she asks, reaching for her drink that Caleb set in front of her a few seconds ago.

“I honestly don’t know. Sometimes the melody isn’t as easy, but the words just come to me.”

Madeline lets out a loud sigh as her shoulders sag forward. “I’m jealous, Lucca, and that’s not an easy thing for me to admit. I’ve been struggling with the same song for a month now, and I’m about to give up.”

I stare at her profile, wishing I could console her in some way. For over a year, we’ve danced around each other, talking whenever we’re together at this bar, but she’s never thrown so many hints that she’d like my help. If I waste this opportunity now, I’ll be kicking myself forever.

“I can help,” I tell her, knowing this is my shot and I may not get many more before someone else snaps up the red-haired beauty.

She turns her head, her eyebrows high and green eyes wide. “You’d do that?”

I want to tell her that I’d do anything for her, but I keep that to myself. “Of course.”

She’s quick to her feet, and before I know it, her arms are wrapped around my shoulders and her cheek is against my face. “You’re a lifesaver, Lucca Bruno. I could almost kiss you.”

She could almost kiss me.

Sigh.

I take a moment to enjoy the feel of her warmth against my skin and the way her hair smells like the sweetest vanilla I’ve ever inhaled.

She pulls her face away but stays tethered to me by her arms. “Are you sure? I can pay you, but I know you make more money on one song than I make in a decade.”

“Friends help friends.”

She stares at me, blinking rapidly in disbelief at my words as she finally separates her body from mine. “I’m your friend?”

I’ve always thought of her as one. For a year, we’ve been together a few nights a week, chatting at the bar, and sharing our war stories from the music industry.

“Well, yeah.”

“I always knew you were a good egg, Lucca, but this favor is so huge, it leaves no more doubt.”

“And if I can’t help you?” I ask, reaching for my drink because having Madeline so close has left me feeling out of sorts.

She playfully swipes at my shoulder. “You’re a musical genius. If you can’t help me, nobody can.”

That’s a tall order to live up to, even for me. While I’ve been successful and do know I have talent, I can’t always retool someone else’s work with the same clarity I can work on my own.

“Your songs are beautiful, Madeline.”

“Not good enough to hit it big, though,” she says, but not in a sour voice. “At least not yet.”

Caleb slides the key to the building across the bar. “Once the last guy is out, so am I. You two know what to do.”

Six months ago, Caleb offered us the place after hours to practice without the interruption of others. Here, we don’t have to worry about waking anyone up in the late hours of the night with our songs. Although this is New York, neighbors only have so much patience, especially in buildings with thin walls.

“I’ll make sure things are buttoned up tight,” I promise him.

Caleb gives me a nod before he smiles at Madeline and makes himself busy again, trying not to hover over the last customer who’s been nursing a beer for longer than anyone would think is humanly possible.

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