Dax is with Modus Grace today; it’s a perfect opportunity to talk to him about his offer to be in the band. I love singing with them but only on a part-time basis. I want to focus on The Bar and flipping houses with my sister. But first, I have one last thing to do for the centre before I completely let go. My phone blasts through my car speakers, “Hello?” “Hey, it’s me, Mel. I wanted to apologise about the family dinner. We didn’t really get a chance to catch up.” “It’s okay.” I laugh at the sincerity in her voice, “Seriously, don’t worry about it. We see each other all the time.” She doesn’t say anything for a minute, “Are you okay?” “Yeah, yeah, I’m good. Mark’s just messaging me.” “You're still talking?” I ask, surprised; it seemed like she was ready to throw in the towel the other night. “Yeah. I decided to give Mark a chance. I mean, why not? You know?” Mel sounds so happy; who am I to rain on her parade. “Well, that’s gr

“What’s wrong with you?”I look up at Andy; I must look like shit if she’s asking. Andy keeps to herself for the most part, but since hooking up with her new beau’s, she’s been more open, which is something I would be proud of her for, but right now, I wish everyone would just leave me the fuck alone. Andy shoves me with her shoulder, playfully waiting for my answer.“I’m fine.”“Hmm, yes, I’ve been there. The ‘I’m fine’, period.”I roll my eyes, “I just didn’t have enough sleep last night. That’s all.”“Ah huh. Well, whatever’s bothering you, fix it. It’s not going to do us any good if you forget the lyrics during our gig tonight.” She pushes off the bar and grabs her sticks, twirling them through her fingers while chatting with Justin.As much as it pisses me off, she’s right. Lyrics aren’t t

JJ parks the car up near an old fashioned iron door at the back of an old, bricked building. I look around, there’s a couple of cars parked, but otherwise, no one is around. “Where are we?” I ask. Where the hell has, he taken me?   Luke grins and takes my hand, giving me a gentle squeeze, “Relax. We’re at one of my restaurants. JJ has taken us to the back for your privacy.” My heart swells, “I don’t know what to say.” I love that he is respecting my boundaries without knowing the actual reason. “Thank you?” he suggests with a cheeky wink. The mischievousness disappears from his eyes when he says, “Stay here.” JJ opens his door for him to exit. JJ closes the door behind him; they walk around the car, and Luke opens my door, holding his hand out for me. He ducks down and looks me in the eye, “Do you trust me?” I smirk, “You steal movie lines often?” He chuckles, “Only the best ones.” I take his hand and exit the car. The bac

Strange that Dax called. Usually, he just shows up unannounced. I decided to start on dinner and cook for two. Dax will likely stick around for dinner and I know just what to make boscaiola pasta and garlic bread. Just as I’ve finished the salad, Dax walks in. “Hey, why the phone call? Everything alright?” I ask “Yeah, I just didn’t want to interrupt anything, just in case there was something to interrupt,” he says pensively. I look at my friend bewildered, “What could you possibly interrupt?” Dax is acting stranger than usual, and that’s saying a lot about him. “Don’t be obtuse, Lillian. Luke was here.” He takes a seat on the barstool and stares at me. I don’t think Dax has ever called me by my full name before. “Okay. Well, there is certainly nothing like that going on.” I shake my head. Is he jealous? “What’s going on?” “I didn’t want to bust in on you, that’s all”, he grins. “Is that my favourite pasta dish?”

People are jamming into The Bar tonight. Joe will be excited about the bottom line, and I can’t say I’m mad about it either. It will help with the extra details Abbey wants to add to the house. All of this doesn’t stop me from pacing back and forth in the office. Joe insisted on installing a two-way mirror in our office, and right now, I’m grateful that he dug his heels in. I’ve been waiting and watching for Luke to show for the last three hours, and nothing. After Dax left, I called him and left a message. An hour later, I called again, and he sent me straight to voicemail. I was pissed. I called his office. The receptionist was a bitch, so I have no idea if she took my details down or not. An hour ago, I left a final message. I have officially become a stage five clinger and stalker.   The only thing that has occupied my mind this afternoon is soundcheck. Now that we’re all in the office except Dax. He’s waiting for Sally at the door.