“Hey!” Zane plopped down next to me, sand landed all over my body. I shouldn’t be surprised, it was Zane.
And then another body plopped on the other side, “Hey, man want a banana?”
“Love bananas,” Zane answered.
“Hey, Demetri.” I said it in a fake surprised voice. “Fancy seeing you here, on set…”
“We’re working on the theme song.” His response before another male voice interrupted. “Jay lost his shit today.”
Zane snorted. “It was bound to happen.”
“Surprised it didn’t happen sooner,” Alec said with his deep rumble.
My brother soon joined.
And I was surrounded by nothing but perfect men, half of whose lives I had wanted to destroy at one point, and most likely the only true friends I’d ever had.
I shrugged. “I heard there was a fight, but I don’t know what happened.”
Nobody made eye contact except Zane, and he had this funny look on his face like I should know exactly what the fight was about.
Demetri coughed.
Zane’s eyebrows shot up in encouragement.
Finally, Linc threw up his hands. “It was about you.”
“Me?” I frowned, “Did I do something wrong? Again?” I laid back against the sand and leaned up on my elbows. “Because I’ve been on time.”
“And you’ve been kicking ass.” Linc winked, “Nah, sis, not about the movie, I mean well, sort of, you know what, maybe you should ask Jay?”
Zane sighed loudly and gave a look to each one of the guys before he said, “You know he’s been my agent since he quit music, right?”
I swallowed, my throat getting drier by the second. “Yes.”
Zane flicked some sand away from his ripped jeans. “So, basically he was a wreck, totally focused on work. Not the guy I remembered, the guy I used to tour with. God, I worshipped him. It’s why I signed with him, he was like… larger than life.”
Alec smiled at Zane sadly. “Remember when the lights went out in Madison Square Garden? And he asked everyone to turn on their cell phones? He created a spotlight and kept singing. The entire place was so silent it was… eerie. They hung on his every word.”
“Lighthouse.” I said. “He was singing Lighthouse.”
And then Demetri started singing.
My mouth dropped open in shock.
Alec tapped against his legs like he was playing drums, and then Zane joined in, and Linc just grinned at me.
“Come on, Ang, sing with us.” Zane elbowed me.
I bit down on my lip, suddenly nervous. I’d only ever sung for Will. The fact that Zane knew that only told me that these guys… these guys knew his secrets, they knew things about us, and in their own way…
They were trying to help.
“I haven’t sung since…” Well, I’d sung the other night with Will, but before then, it had been years.
“Nobody’s here.” Zane shrugged. “One hour lunch.”
And then he started in on the next verse, a slow melody of rhythm followed the way he and the other guys harmonized perfectly. No wonder they were in charge of the music.
“Light me on fire…” I closed my eyes and kept singing. “How can I spend any amount of time without your light?” I bobbed my head as Linc took out his phone. “It makes me think of lonely nights, when you’re not leading the way, but I should have begged you harder to stay.”
Alec crooned. “Be my lighthouse — lead the way — wherever your light shines, I’ll forever stay.”
“You spread your wings across the sky,” I lifted my arms up, “And said you’d catch me since I can’t fly. Let me go.”
“Never.” Demetri added. “Because you light me on fire…”
The guys suddenly stopped singing.
All eyes fell behind me.
Zane looked guilty.
I felt guilty even though I didn’t know what I had done wrong.
Hair stood on the back of my arms as someone sat behind me and said, “You guys forgot the last verse.”
“It’s yours,” I croaked heart racing.
And for the first time since we’d broken up, I heard perfection, also known as Will Sutherland’s voice, the Sutherland Sunset, the voice that had once set a million teenage hearts on fire.
“I’ll let you go, if I can go too, I’ll let you fly if I can carry you.” I shuddered as his voice wrapped around me, as Zane harmonized with him. “I always wanted the fire in your eyes, promise me it will never die, forever you said, forever we stay, forever will always lead the way.”
The guys ended with the chorus.
And a stunned silence fell over the group.
“That’s it.” Zane tilted his head. “The theme song to the movie, why not?”
Will went immobile behind me, I was afraid he wasn’t even breathing. “I don’t know if Jay’s going to want to go for that.”
“He said yes.” Linc grinned. “I just sent him the video. Oh, and Will, he says if you ever threaten to kick his ass again he’s going to knock your pretty—”
“—my pretty capped teeth out. Yeah, got it” Will finished with a rasp. “And I don’t have capped teeth.”
“It would be okay if you do.” Demetri patted him on the arm. “I mean I’m not even sure Alec has a real penis at this point.”
Alec didn’t even flinch just said, “At least mine works.”
Demetri burst out laughing, but I was frozen in place. Will was almost behind me, I wasn’t exactly sitting between his legs, but it was close.
I tried not to feel so awkward, but I could barely move, barely breathe.
And then the awkwardness got worse when every guy straightened as Jay walked up to the group and announced that our break was over since the rain had stopped, and he wanted me and Will to do our scene.
I was okay with a scene.
But I wasn’t okay with the fact that he thrust a script in my face as well as Will’s and said, “I think you’ll be happy with the re-write. After all, you’re professionals, right, Will?”
I WAS SURROUNDED by clothes, costumes, makeup, and basically another version of Hell and yet I couldn’t wipe the grin from my face.
She’d always had a beautiful voice, angelic, and it always pissed me off that she never shared it with the world, that acting was more important when she could have made a killing on Broadway. The only song she ever agreed to sing was Lighthouse the one song that when I recorded it for my own solo release…
She had been too busy getting high to lay down the tracks.
It had become a thing.
The tardiness.
Losing weight.
Losing interest.
Losing the light behind her eyes.
And I hated that she refused help as if nothing was wrong with what she was doing.
And I still didn’t know why.
I knew there was pain there, I knew there was misery, but why self-destruct? Why not let the people you love help you?
I shook away the morose thoughts as I put on a way-too-tight white T-shirt that should be illegal in most states, right along with skinny jeans and boots.
I looked like I had just gone into Demetri Daniels’ closet and then just for grins stolen Zane’s shoes.
God, I was too old for these kinds of clothes.
Couldn’t they at least get me relaxed jeans?