Page 20 of Crescendo

She laughed. “You need to make your personality big enough to fill the space. Like I do.”

“As if it’s just that easy.”

“You’re a doctor. Isn’t it?”

I breathed a laugh. “Interestingly, they don’t make me treat patients on stage. I don’t think that would be particularly hygienic.”

“Oh my god. Ella,” she laughed, rolling her eyes.

I’d never before noticed how different my name sounded in an American accent. Hers wasn’t particularly strong or regional, but still, for just four letters, it sounded awfully different. Maybe it was just her.

She stepped away, flinging her arms out, and spinning in a circle. “Take up space. Enjoy it.”

“I don’t know if your recent work really deserves to take up space in here,” Eliza shot, her tone not quite as acerbic as with some of her previous barbs. I assumed even she couldn’t muster that level of bite when she was emotionally overwhelmed.

Lydia grinned. “You really do spend a lot of time thinking about my work, don’t you, Lizzy? Just got my whole back catalogue playing on loop in your mind all day?”

“Ew. As if.”

“You’ve clearly listened to it, and, if it’s always the first thing you think of, I think we can all tell what’s going on.”

Clara and Dodge laughed, while Bansi made a sweet comment about how he’d love Lydia to score his life, and Eliza simply rolled her eyes and wandered off to the side, dragging Hannah with her.

“I don’t know how you do that,” I murmured.

Lydia shot me a questioning look. “Do what?”

“That.Just… all of that.”

She laughed like she still wasn’t quite sure what I meant, and moved to grab my wrists. “Here. Arms out.”

I was powerless to resist, even as I felt a little foolish and undeserving—and, then, dizzy as she spun the two of us around.

Her hands, staying wrapped tight around my wrists, felt warm and grounding, even as the lights and the seats and the stage blurred into an uncomfortable mess that was more emotional than it had any right to be.

When we stopped spinning, my legs felt wobbly and I gripped Lydia’s upper arms to steady myself. Her smile was wide and bright, amused by my weak balance, I was sure, and her eyes sparkled under the stage lights like they belonged there.Shebelonged there.

Her arms wrapped around my back, holding me steady, and, suddenly, all that existed was her and the spinning.

“See, it’s fun up here,” she said, her voice close and quiet, her gaze holding mine. “You don’t even have to tell me I’m right. I already know it.”

I laughed breathlessly. “When don’t you know it?”

“Never.”

“That’s what I thought.” I nodded and immediately clamped my eyes shut against the new wave of dizziness.

“Easy there.”

“Sorry. It’s been a long time since I was spinning around like that.”

“You know,” Eliza’s voice said, cutting in again, “it’s a little desperate coming to this programme just to throw yourself at Lydia Howard Fox.”

I felt myself blush furiously as I tried to step quickly away. Lydia didn’t let me.

I hadn’t even been trying anything. I was just dizzy.

“There we go with the full name again,” she said, shooting Eliza a look. “You don’t need to be jealous of other people flirting with me. We all know you want to flirt with me too.”

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