Page 102 of Love You Like That (Excess All Areas 4)

That word again.

“You think we might be there by then. A home for just the two of us?”

Zoe shrugged. “Who knows if the timing will be right. But I like the idea of it. Don’t you?”

Alex realised he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. For the moment when she would realise she didn’t want to be in a relationship with him. Just like how his other relationships had failed.

But in the same way she needed reassurance from him that she was enough for him, he hadn’t realised how badly he needed it confirmed that he was enough for her.

“Yeah. I love that idea, Zoe. And in the spirit of honesty, I like hearing you talk about a future for us. I need to hear it too. And speaking of futures and homes…I signed the paperwork for the centre today.”

Zoe waved her hands in the air in silent applause. “I’m so excited for you.”

“I wondered if I could ask you a huge favour. Can you grab the keys from the letting agent and then be at the site on Monday at five to let in some contractors while they measure up, please? They’ll take about an hour. Then lock up. No worries if you can’t because of uni. It’s just that the first time they can—”

“I’d love to. I know I don’t have cash in this like you do, but I still feel part of it. Like I’m helping you build something important.”

Alex sighed, his heart almost hurting from how full it felt. “We can build it together. Money. Elbow grease. Heart. Legacy. All of it.”

“Maybe it’s our first home.”

“Yeah. I love that our first home will be the first home others feel…well…at home in too.”

Zoe’s shoulders ached, and her wrists burned like the fiery depths of hell. Her repetitions must be well over five thousand by now.

“No pain, no gain” was written for moments like this. But she played the piece with every ounce of sweat and determination. When she was done, she threw the mallets to the ground in frustration. It hadn’t felt quite right, and there was no doubt in her mind that it hadn’t sounded right either.

“You want the truth?” Lorenzo Boncaldo asked as Zoe flapped the hem of her T-shirt to cool her heated and sweaty body and Philip, the translator, signed. She hadn’t worn her hearing aids. Lorenzo had made a good point earlier on in the day and he’d said it with such frankness that she hadn’t even been upset.

What little there was of her hearing was still deteriorating. And it was going to get worse. His theory was they needed to start practising and performing in a way such that it wouldn’t matter what her actual level of hearing was, she’d be confident in her playing.

But it had meant the lesson had gone more slowly as they’d relied on her lipreading and Philip’s signing to communicate.

“No, I dropped out of a UK tour with a famous rock group so you could blow smoke up my arse.”

Lorenzo laughed. “Smart mouth there, Zoe. Your hands have gotten lazy without practise.”

Zoe sighed. She had a feeling they had. It hadn’t felt quite as smooth. “Okay.”

“Yet you are still the best student I have ever had.”

Zoe looked from Philip’s hands to Lorenzo’s eyes. “But. You’ve forgotten who you are. And this is just a speed bump on your rise to the top.”

“Pretty big speed bump.”

“Pretty big talent. One negates the other. On a scale of one to ten for your own performance, what do you rate it?”

She glanced at Philip as he signed. “Maybe a six, six and a half.”

Lorenzo nodded. “That’s probably fair. You know where I would rate you in my current graduating class.”

“Top?”

Lorenzo laughed. “Exactly. And that’s the Zoe who needs to start showing up again for class. Because I swear to god, I want to kick your arse for that slow transition on the fourth bar. And I want to berate you for your shitty song choice. It was too easy for you, and you know it. I’m not used to you taking the easy way out. Bring me arrogant Zoe and a harder piece tomorrow, or I’m going to refuse to teach you.”

“You think I’m having a pity party?” Indignance kicked in at his words.

“Look me in the eye and tell me it isn’t. Getting stuck because of a problem is one thing. Staying stuck is indulgent, and I’m not here to pander.”

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