Page 18 of Sycopation
Zavier laughed. “Probably better than the rest of us.”
“Oh,” Mish said, “somehow I suspect you’re more than capable of handling guys.”
A flush crept up Zavier’s neck. Unusual. “Well, I do have my ways, yes.” His smile was devilish and full of light.
Mish nodded. “Had a feeling you weren’t straight.”
“Me?” Zavier laughed. “Nowhere near.”
Ray could’ve told Mish that.
She and Domino went off to talk to the techs about their guitars, which left Ray with Zavier alone, and he didn’t want to deal with Zavier at the moment. So more tea.
The change in climate and the flight across the country had given him a scratchy throat he didn’t like. He always brought hisown tea and honey, and the green room had hot water—perfect. A moment later, he was sipping the hot brew down.
Mish subtly asking about Zavier’s sexuality rolled around in Ray’s brain. Zavier had been fearless in high school. First time Ray had seen him in the halls was when one of the football players had shoved Zavier into a locker and called him a fag. Zavier had turned around and punched the dude in the face, hard enough to bloody his nose. “I’mqueer, you fucking asshole. Get it right.”
Second time he’d seen Zavier was about a week later behind the school, mostly hidden by some shrubs. Same football dude was with him, but this time on his knees, sucking Zavier off.
Zavier did most certainly have a way with men. And with women. Pretty much everyone.
While working on his tea, Ray headed outside to a spot between the backstage proper and the concessions area, where the VIP guests were allowed to listen to whatever band was playing currently. They couldn’t see much of the stage, but that didn’t matter. It was private enough, but gave him a glimpse of the amphitheater lawn.
There, staring out at the crowd through some fencing, he found Zavier. And fuck if he didn’t look a little pale. Nerves? Cold feet?
“Hey.” He spoke gently, because Zavier’s focus on the crowd was intense.
Zavier’s features smoothed over. “Hi, Ray.” He nodded at the cup. “Your throat okay?”
“Yeah. Little dry from the flight. This is mostly pre-gaming.”
“Lemon and honey.” Zavier crossed his arms. Behind his smile was something else. Yeah, maybe fear.
“What about you? Are you okay?”
Zavier started and dropped his arms to his side. “Yes. I think so.” He took a long look at the crowd before turning toward Ray.“This is different. This type of audience. The size.” He shook his head. “I’ll be fine when I’m behind the kit.”
“Those symphony concert halls have to be pretty big.” Last thing they needed was Zavier freaking out. Kevin had done that the first big concert. “You guys even did touring in Europe, right?”
Zavier nodded and leaned back against the fence. Open. Honest. The sunlight shone against his black hair.
It occurred to Ray that Zavier wasn’t that much older than him—two years, maybe two and a half. Hell, Ray was nervous, too. This concert might make or break them. “Can’t be that different.”
Pursed lips, then a smile. “It’s—there’s more chaos here. The symphony was very organized, even during outdoor performances. The air’s different here. The vibe. This is like walking on a live wire.”
“Welcome to the rock-and-roll life.”
Zavier pushed off the fence and the headed toward backstage. “Can’t say I’m in the life untilafterwe play.”
Ray clapped him on the back, and left his hand there while they walked. “You’re the one who’s spent days telling me we can do this, that I can.” The songs were ready, everything was as done as it got.
Zavier slowed to a stop and Ray’s hand fell away. They stood close, inches apart. The air sparked, especially with Zavier looking at him like that. “We can do this,” he said. “You’re going to walk out onto that stage and blow them away.”
Zavier believed in him.Reallybelieved in him. The realization was a physical shock. “I?—”
“Will blow them away.” Zavier’s hand clasped Ray’s hip, and he spoke each word clearly, like he wouldn’t accept any other answer, as if there were no other answer.
Maybe there wasn’t. “Yeah. All right.”
