Page 29 of Open Road (Tattooed Hearts Duet 3)

“Welcome to Throwback. Anything else I can get you at the moment?” the waiter asked, looking us all over.

“We’re good,” Zane replied, having the best manners apparently. Once the waiter was gone, I looked around the room, taking everything in.

“This kind of reminds me of the night we met,” Zane said, leaning closer to me.

“Yeah, it kind of does.” I knocked into his shoulder, smiling as I took a sip of my drink. The tartness exploded across my tongue, quickly followed by the sweet, balancing it out. “Oh, yum. This is great.” I sucked it down more, the rush going to my head a little.

“Slow down, Peach. I want to understand your lyrics, not your slurs.”

“It’s non-alcoholic,” I said, sticking my tongue out at him. “The worst I’ll get is a sugar high.”

Slade stared me down, not backing away from his statement, and I rolled my eyes. Sometimes, he was such a spoilsport. Thankfully, our food arrived soon after, distracting us all.

“I know we just ate, but that felt like hours ago,” Simon said as he popped a pretzel dog into his mouth.

“This doesn’t count as food. It’s like after-dinner snacks,” I said, taking a bite of the cheesecake ball.

The guys snorted at my assessment as my phone buzzed, making me jump. Looking down, I saw a notification from the app stating that it was time to head to the stage.

“Oh! It’s us. We’re up!” I took one more bite and followed it with a drink before standing and pulling Slade with me. He didn’t make it easy, but eventually followed me to the side of the stage.

“Name?” the tech asked, standing to the side with a tablet in their hand.

“Lennox. And do you have a guitar?” I asked.

“Yeah, it should be tuned.” He nodded to a section where different instruments were, and Slade walked over, picking up a few guitars before finding one he liked. He pulled the strap over his head and began to pick a few chords, testing it himself.

“You’re up,” the tech said, drawing my attention back to the stage.

Slade followed, sitting on a stool while I took the microphone. The lights shined down on us, making me a little blind to the crowd, which always helped me focus on the music. Nerves began to fill me, but I shook them away, reminding myself no one knew me here and it was just for fun.

Slade began to play the opening chords, slapping his hand on the guitar between beats as the rest of the music track began to play behind us. Looking at him, I started singing the lyrics to “Ho Hey” by the Lumineers. It was a favorite of mine, and I was glad he was willing to sing it with me.

When the chorus came, he joined in, our voices melding together in perfect harmony. I smiled, feeling more at ease the longer we sang. The next verse came, and he took it, changing one of the words, making me laugh.

“I think you’re right for me. Look at what we’ve been.” His eyes pierced me as he sang, filling my heart even more.

When the chorus came around again, I joined in, feeling as if we could do anything, the adrenaline of singing together, pumping through me. That notion from earlier of coming alive felt even stronger, and I wondered what it all meant.

Singing the last verse, we ended the song, staring at one another. I jumped when the applause broke out, having forgotten the audience was even there. Turning back to the microphone, I smiled, waving as we headed off the stage. The tech guy stared at us, giving us a respectful nod as we returned to our table. A couple of people called out to us as we walked, and I didn’t know what to make of it. I had fans when I sang in Nashville, but it had never felt like this. Even though I was singing, it’d felt empty because the people I was singing to were all strangers.

Tonight it had been with one of the men I loved while the other two listened, and that felt magical.

Simon and Zane stood, pulling us both into hugs and giving me a kiss, much to the amusement of the people around us. At least they weren’t gaping at me. That had happened a few times at home.

“That was amazing, Lenn. You have got to do the competition in the next city.”

“I don’t know.” I shrugged, even though inside, it didn’t feel as scary as before. I guess having people who loved you and supported you made things feel less frightening.

When Slade grunted, I looked up and found his eyes searing into mine. He grabbed my chin, pulling me closer to him. “You deserve to be on stage, Peach. So, if I have to suffer through it to make you do it, then I will. It wasn’t as bad having you singing to me.”

“Yeah?” I asked, licking my lips. His possessiveness was sending a different vibe straight to my clit.

“Yeah.” He smiled, leaning in to give me a kiss.

“Not bad,hick,” a voice I was beginning to hate said, pulling me out of my loved-up bubble.

Slade growled, turning to face the guy that had dissed us the day before at the convention. “You following us, Lee?”

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