“You ready yet, girlie?”
I pulled my boots on and glanced up as Hailey walked into my room. She gave a low whistle and I blushed, because I was already considering changing. She caught my look and shook her head.
“Uh-huh. No way. You look way too hot, and Trevor is going to be drooling like a sick dog.”
I stood and glanced at myself in the mirror. “I don’t know. Are you sure?”
She gave me the look, the high eyebrow, are-you-even-kidding-me look, and I grabbed my gloss and shoved it into my purse.
I’d dug through my closet and found a denim skirt that may or may not have been on the short side. I’d pulled on a pair of spandex shorts because, well, you know, the bending-over thing could be dicey. Paired with an indigo-colored halter top and my boots, I was kind of rocking some weird sort of country/rock thing.
“The guys are waiting. Let’s go.”
I followed her out of my room. “Do you know where we’re going?”
“Yes, I do,” she said with a giggle. “But I’m on strict orders not to say a word.”
It was Friday night, and my week had been full of highs, mostly because of Trevor, and a few lows. The highs kind of balanced out the crap that my family was dealing with, and I was grateful for that.
I spied Trevor before he saw me, and just like every single time I saw him, he took my breath away. He was chatting with my father, arms crossed over his chest as he nodded to whatever Dad was saying. He wore a plain black T-shirt, faded jeans, and a pair of Docs. The ends of his hair were damp, as if he’d just showered, that blue streak fading a bit, and he was sporting the unshaved look (which I totally adored).
I stepped off the last stair, and whoop, there went my stomach again. His eyes were intense, and the smile that lit up his face when he saw me made me feel like I was the only person in the room. Stupid and kind of cliché, but there you have it.
It was hard not to let him know how twisted up inside I was. And as much as he’d apologized and told me that he’d never push me away again, there was still a part of me that was afraid. That kind of pain wasn’t something I ever wanted to feel again.
“Hey,” I said.
He smiled and shook my father’s hand. “We won’t be too late, sir.”
“It’s Eric, and I’m going to hold you to that.”
“Okay,” Link said, reaching for Hailey. “We better go or we’re going to be late.”
I slid in beside Trevor but made it a point to keep some distance between us.
“You look beautiful,” he said, voice a little rough.
I didn’t answer, because I wasn’t really sure what to say. Did I tell him that he looked so gorgeous it made my heart ache? Did I tell him that when his eyes met mine, some little piece of me melted?
Hailey cranked the tunes, and that filled the silence between us until Link pulled over to the curb several minutes later.
“We’re here,” Link said.
I peered out the window and saw that we were downtown. I spied the Coffee House across the street, and even though it was hot as sin, the patio was full. Groups of kids milled around, and there was a steady stream of teens moving inside.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Word got out, I guess.” Link was grinning like an idiot as he and Hailey started forward. I didn’t have a chance to say anything else, because Trevor grabbed my hand and we followed them across the street.
A few kids yelled out to Trevor and he nodded, a smile on his face and a lightness in him that I’d never noticed before. It was packed inside the Coffee House, and as soon as I saw the two guitars up on the small stage at the back, I knew.
Heart pounding, I let him put his arm across my shoulder and guide me through the crowd. We had to stop a few times, guys wanting to high-five him and slap his shoulder. He was polite and introduced me to every single person he talked to. Several of them mentioned what had gone down with my dad, and the cool thing was that every single one of them was supportive.
We finally made it to the front where Hales was already seated, and Link winked at us. “So we gonna do this or what?”
Trevor was nodding, his eyes on me, his hands on either side of my face.
“I wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t for you,” he said, voice a little rough. “And I don’t even know if I’m going to be all that good, but for you, I’ll try.” He cleared his throat. “I’m all in, Everly. You have to know that.”
I took a moment. I ignored the scared voice inside me—the one that said he might hurt me again—and I nodded.
I reached for his hands, my fingers caressing the tattoos on his knuckles. Courage. Strength. I stared at them until the symbols blurred. Until my heart was pounding so hard and loud, I was sure he could hear it.
I was either all in or I wasn’t. There was no more figuring this out.
I leaned into him. “I know.” And then I stood on my toes and kissed him. And I mean, kissed him. There were catcalls and whistles, and when I finally broke away, we were both breathing heavy.
“I love you,” I whispered.
Trevor rested his forehead on mine. “You know that I love you too, right?”
“Show me,” I said with a smile. He took a step back and nodded. He knew. That was enough.
He turned and hopped onto the stage, striding across it like he owned it. He grabbed a guitar, and Link grabbed the other one, and then they were sitting right in front of us.
Trevor flexed his fingers and then started strumming, but his eyes were on me and they never left. He cleared his throat a couple of times and then started to speak.
There’s this extra cadence that you can hear when someone is on a mic, like, it picks up all the warm parts and makes them larger than life. Trevor’s voice was like that—I had the whole goose bumps thing going on. I had it huge. And man, it felt great.
“It feels good to be back,” he said to a chorus of cheers and we love you. “Yeah,” he said with a grin that melted my heart. “I love you too.”
He kept strumming his guitar, and Link joined in, the two of them filling up the place with something that was perfect.
“I’ve had a shit year, you know? But ah, this girl right here.” He pointed to me, and the place erupted into more catcalls and whistles. “I know, right?” He laughed. “Well, this girl taught me a few things over the summer.”
Someone shouted something that I didn’t quite get, but Trevor laughed and shook his head. “No way, man. Some stuff is just for me, got it?”
More catcalls and whistles.
And then his playing got softer, more intimate, and I thought that if I wasn’t careful, I’d drown in his eyes.
“I haven’t played this particular guitar in over a year and, uh, I’m glad that my dad’s here to see it put to good use again.”
I cranked my head around and spied Trevor’s parents near the coffee bar, along with his sister Taylor. His dad raised his chin, and his smile was so huge I could see it from where I sat.
“I’d try to play my old Epiphone, but my chops, well, they weren’t up to snuff. I almost gave up, and the only reason I’m here tonight is because of this girl right here. Everly Jenkins.” His eyes were on, intense, and beautiful. “I love you.”
Okay, I was blushing and blushing hard.
“This song is for you.”
And then something magical happened. Trevor closed his eyes and started to sing a song about a man who loved his mother and loved his God. It was a beautiful song. A simple song. It was a song about love, acceptance, and listening to your heart.
I don’t know if he screwed up, got the words wrong, or played the wrong notes. If he did? It didn’t matter, not to me anyway. He was up there for himself, and he was up there for me. Singing to me. Singing a song that made my throat tight and my heart ache. A song that I would never forget.
It was Trevor’s song.
And for that one perfect moment, it was my song too.