The crowd erupted with deafening applause.
From backstage, Trihn watched as Chloe rose from an underground platform onto the stage. It was insane to think that, just last night, she’d had front-row seats to this show with her best friends, and now, she was watching it live with her boyfriend, who would be performing the final number with Chloe.
Her life had flipped upside down in the span of one day.
Damon laced their fingers together and rubbed his thumb up and down her hand. “Breathe,” he told her.
She turned away from Chloe’s show and stared at him, taking in his chiseled strong jawline, sharp cheekbones, long dark lashes framing even darker eyes, and perfect kissable lips. His messy hair was tucked up under his signature flat-brim baseball cap, and he’d gone with an all black ensemble. Chloe’s people had said they would dress him if he wanted, but he’d wanted to be comfortable and confident out there. Trihn was biased, but she thought he was strikingly handsome tonight.
“Why are you comforting me? You’re the one about to go out in front of seventeen-thousand people.”
“And you’re the one who looks like you’re going to hyperventilate.”
“I do not,” she said. She took a few even breaths and reminded herself to calm down. She was supposed to be here for moral support, not freaking out herself.
“I did a sound check already. Chloe and I practiced the song a dozen times today. It’s going to be fine.” His fingers grazed her chin. His dark orbs bore into hers, and it was as if he could see right through her. “We’re going to be fine, too, love.” He raised their laced fingers to his lips and pressed a kiss there.
They watched the remainder of the show from the sidelines. Near the end, a guy came over to collect Damon for his role in the closing number.
“I’ll see you after the show,” he said.
“Have fun.”
“I will.”
And then Damon was gone.
A few minutes later, Chloe had made another full costume change, the last of some ten outfits she’d worn during the two-hour show. It was a black front-zipper high-waist miniskirt and a jeweled black bra top with spiked high heels that Trihn would die for.
Chloe had a rhinestone microphone and spoke into it, “Hello, fabulous Las Vegas!”
The crowd cheered for her.
“I have one last song for you tonight before I go. You might have seen my new single ‘Heartbreaker’ online today. Did everyone watch it?”
The stadium practically shook with cheers from her dedicated followers.
“Well, my good friend is here tonight to sing that version of ‘Heartbreaker’ for you. Everyone, DJ Damon Stone!”
Damon walked onstage with confidence in every single fiber of his being. The crowd cheered just as loud for him as they had for Chloe, and he soaked it up. What would terrify most people was a straight shot of adrenaline to his system. He was purely in the zone when he stepped up to the booth.
The drummer kicked in. The guitar melody thrummed to life. The bassist started up the backbeat. And then Damon mixed it all together with his soundboard until it sounded as amazing live as it did every single time he had played it in Posse.
Chloe was cued up for her intro, and then she went full swing into her number one hit. Damon picked up the backup vocals with ease, and soon, they were singing together. Their voices mingled, hers shining above his, and the harmony was perfect. Near the end of the song, when her big vocals came into play, she turned to face Damon, and with their eyes locked, they sang the final words to each other.
Trihn’s heart stuttered.
The crowd cheered for the finale. Chloe turned away from Damon and took a bow, and then she ran back and grabbed his hand, forcing him to bow with her.
“Thank you,” Chloe said breathlessly. She waved at her audience and then strutted offstage, still holding Damon’s hand. Once they were offstage, Chloe threw herself into Damon’s arms. “That was incredible!”
He hugged her briefly and then put her back down on the ground. He hastily removed himself from her, but he was smiling wide from their performance. “That crowd! You have the best fans.”
Trihn just stood there and watched with a sinking pit of worry in her stomach. She was happy for him. The show had been incredible. He had the world at his feet. She didn’t want to think about anything else—not the fear clawing away at her or the knowledge of what fame could do to people and definitely not the look Chloe had on her face when she looked at Damon.
In that instant, he turned to Trihn, as if knowing she was watching. His smile lit up, and he called her over. She walked to him, and he pulled her to his side.
“Hey, Damon, stick around. I’ll be right back,” Chloe said.
Mateo was already hurrying her away to her dressing room.
“See you in a bit.” Damon turned his attention back to Trihn. “What did you think?”