Man, why did I have to hit fucking Hunter in the first place? It’s not like I didn’t already know I could kick his ass ten times over.

Oh well.

I’d worry about it tomorrow.

Now it was time to gather everyone up and go celebrate someplace else. There was no way I was letting Hunter Blakeley ruin my perfect evening.

No fucking way.

Besides, what where the chances of running into him tonight?

SAMANTHA

The band on stage at the Belly Up Tavern rocked the house. The place was packed. After the crowd at Charboneau Gallery had finally thinned, we all drove here to unwind and celebrate.

Christos and Jake knew the bouncers outside, so they let me, Madison, Romeo, and Kamiko all sneak inside to see the band. But they made us promise not to order any drinks. Christos and Jake told the bouncers they’d keep an eye on us.

The Belly Up was a combination bar and music venue. It had a really big stage at one end, and two bars at the other. A huge great white shark statue hung over one of the bars on cables and surfboards lined the walls.

“I’ve never been in a bar before,” I hissed to Madison.

“What?” she shouted.

The band was so loud, I don’t know why I was whispering. I leaned over to her ear and said loudly, “I’ve never been in a bar before!”

“Me neither!” she hollered. “Isn’t it awesome?!”

I nodded.

We danced casually, swaying to the music.

Romeo randomly started twerking, his butt thrusting behind him as his arms extended in front of him, stirring the butter churn. It didn’t make any sense because the band played rock, not hip hop. I started giggling instantly.

“What are you doing, Romeo?” Kamiko laughed.

“Trying to lasso me a man!” He grinned and looked around, but the only people watching him looked horrified. Romeo didn’t care. He twerked away like crazy.

I glanced back at the stage and noticed the drummer and the bass player looked familiar. I turned to Madison and shouted, “Hey, aren’t those two guys Jake’s friends?!”

“Yeah!” Madison shouted, “That’s Lucas Summer on bass and his brother Logan on the drums!”

“They helped Christos and Jake move my stuff into the house!” I shouted.

Madison nodded.

The band was really good. The song they were playing started to speed up. The whole house was rocking in time to the music.

Logan was going crazy on the drums. He looked like a wild animal. A total contrast to how shy he’d been the day I’d met him. What was that old saying? Still waters ran deep? Or was it hot shy guys made great rock drummers?

Me and Madison really got into the music, banging our heads like idiots until our hair twirled around. We were both laughing and dizzy and had to stop.

I almost tripped over my platform sandals, but Christos caught me in his arms and stood me up.

He hollered, “Me and Jake are going to get some drinks! Do you guys want anything?”

“We told those bouncers we wouldn’t drink!” I hollered uncertainly. I mean, I’d be happy to have a drink or two. I didn’t plan on getting drunk. But I didn’t want to get anyone in trouble.

“You’re such a good girl!” Christos quipped.

“I can be bad!” I grinned.

“Now?! Or do I have to wait until later?!”

“Uh…” I didn’t know how to respond to that. I hadn’t been thinking of getting down and dirty on the dance floor. “Maybe you can have Romeo twerk for you?!”

Christos took one look at Romeo, who was in a jerky twerking trance, and blurted laughter. “No!” Christos shouted. He kissed my cheek and said, “You can show me how bad you are later!” He squeezed my butt and I jumped. “Me and Jake will get you guys some waters! And you can share my drink, if you want!”

“Okay!” I smiled as the two of them squeezed through the crowd toward the bar.

The next song the band played was a slow, heart wrenching ballad. The lights on stage faded to a mellow blue to match the mood of the music. Lucas sang on the mic at the front of the stage while playing his bass guitar. He had a smooth, sexy voice. I’d already thought he was cute with his surfer good looks and blue eyes, but hearing him sing, I had no doubt drooling packs of women chased him everywhere he went.

Based on what I could make out of the lyrics, I think the song was about a guy whose girlfriend had died or had left him. I wasn’t sure which.

Lucas and Logan sang the heartfelt chorus together, in perfect harmony:

“When I awoke

You did fall asleep

Now your eyes are closed, and

I can only weep.”

“Why did you go, girl

I just found myself

Now I’m all alone, and

I really need your love.”

The brother’s voices blended fluidly, expressing a sorrowful sense of loss perfectly. They were both total heart throbs.

After Lucas and Logan sang the chorus a second time, the spotlight shifted away from them toward the other side of the stage. It stopped on the guitar player, who I finally noticed was a young woman with long flowing hair. If I had to guess, she was about my age, maybe a little older.

She had been hiding toward the side of the stage for most of the show, not really calling much attention to herself. She was acting so shy, she almost seemed fragile. But when it was time for her guitar solo, she stood at the front of the stage, inches from the crowd.

The spotlight glimmered blue diamonds off her guitar. I saw arms from the crowd reaching up to touch her like she was a pagan shaman performing a magical ritual. Maybe she was. I thought she might be distracted by the reaching hands, but she was in her own world, totally focused. She played her heart out.

The sound of her electric guitar poured out of the speakers like a human wail, the gut wrenching sound of tears and heartbreak and it swept me away. This mystery girl seemed like she was so full of sadness that she couldn’t contain it any longer, and the only way she could release it was through playing her guitar.

I was in total awe of her ability to grab my emotions and connect mine to hers with such immediacy.

As her guitar solo built to a crescendo, she threw her head back, her long hair dangling behind her, her eyes closed, her face overwhelmed with pure emotion. She wasn’t fragile at all. She had to be strong and courageous to channel all the emotion inside her and project it through her guitar with such honesty and vulnerability.

 I felt chills coursing through my body and my eyes were suddenly hot and brimming with tears.

This young woman was amazing.

After she finished her guitar solo, Lucas and Logan sang the chorus again, but with new words.

“Now it’s time to heal

Time for me to live,

But it’s hard for me to say…”

Then Lucas sang a line by himself,

“It’s time to let you go…”

followed by Logan singing,

“I’ll never let you go…”

Together, they sang,

“Again. No, not again.”

Based on the lyrics, I wondered if Lucas had lost a girlfriend and Logan was trying to hold onto the one he had? It was all so mysterious.

The only thing I knew for sure was that I was crying and laughing when the song ended. I couldn’t get over how much the band had moved me with their music.

Everyone in the bar cheered and clapped.

A second later, the band ripped into a new song, totally upbeat, and everyone was dancing to the steady, rocking groove. The girl on guitar did another guitar solo toward the end of the song, playing a million miles an hour. People cheered the whole time she played.

This time, instead of looking like she was going to explode with sadness, she had a look of primal rage on her face. At the end of her solo, she hit this one long note that sounded like a scream. She held her free hand up in the air while the note vibrated endlessly.