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Laz clapped my shoulder, squeezing once. “You too. I know it's harder when you take on Zion’s role too, but you were great tonight. Not one missed note.”

I chuckled. When I first started learning music, that had been almost impossible for me. Doing two things at once wasn’t my strong suit. But after years of practice, I was better at it now. I still struggled sometimes, which was why we had Zion in the first place, but I’d do in a pinch.

“Thanks, man. I’m gonna get a drink. Anyone else?”

Most of them shook their heads. Unlike me, they had actual day jobs. I was the only one living the starving artist lifestyle. I raised my eyebrow at Ruby, who hadn’t acknowledged me yet.

“You down, R?”

She pursed her lips, frowning at her phone before tossing it aside. “Yeah. I need to feed and my usual feeder just canceled on me.”

I grimaced. Vampires were barely better treated than demons were in this realm. Finding a decent feeder was hard. I understood that life events came up, but Ruby only had the one feeder. If they ditched out, she didn’t eat.

“If you need someone to supplement, you know you can ask any of us,” I offered.

She made a face. “No offense, but that’s not going to happen.”

I snickered. There was a level of intimacy involved with vampire feedings, but she was my friend and I didn't want her starving. After the other guys headed out, I stopped her from following, leveling her with a look.

“I’m not gonna push, but I am going to make sure you heard me. If you need help, tell me. We can close our eyes and pretend we’re with someone else. It’s better than you starving yourself.”

Her usual scowl softened, and she sighed. “I know. I’m not there yet, but I appreciate the offer. I’ll have a few drinks, scope out any potentials, and get back to you.”

Nodding, I tossed my arm over her shoulder, my guitar slung over my back as we headed to the bar. Ruby and I had been friends since we were teens, and I never wanted her to suffer. We toyed with the idea of a relationship when we were younger, but while we were great friends and bandmates, the spark wasn’t there. We agreed to stay friends and when I started this band, she was the first person I asked to join me.

Setting my guitar protectively between the bar and my feet, I lifted my chin at the bartender. “Hey, Maya. Two beers, please.”

She nodded to acknowledge us, grabbing our drinks when she had a spare minute. Sliding them in front of us, she offered us a smile.

“Nice show tonight.”

“Appreciate it.” I handed her some cash, leaning my forearms on the bar top. “How’d the crowd look?”

She pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Decent. Interested. I heard a few people ask your name and at least two were looking you up on their phones while I got them drinks.”

That made me smile. Each fan counted, and I loved that we even snagged one person’s attention. When Maya got us this gig, I had my reservations. The club she worked at was nice, but not our usual kind of venue. It was a little higher class than I was used to. I came here with the guys for drinks, but I never thought about playing here. But they had a drop out in their line up last minute and when Maya offered it to me, I couldn’t say no. I was glad we did.

“So what am I gonna have to do to appropriately thank you for doing this?”

She raised an eyebrow, a teasing grin pulling at her lips. “You know what I want, Hen.”

I made a face. “We don’t play weddings. Pick something else.”

She laughed, her eyes dancing with amusement. I loved her and her fiancee, Isla, but we were a rock band, not a wedding band. I shuddered at the thought of playing sappy love songs all night.

“Well, we’re willing to pay. So when you become desperate enough, let us know.”

Ruby had been busy scanning the crowd, but she turned around at the word ‘pay’. “Hold up. What are we talking about?”

Maya gestured to me with a tip of her head. “We asked if you guys would play at our wedding. Mr. Big Shot over here thinks he’s too good to do weddings.”

Ruby scowled at me. “We aren’t in a position to turn down gigs, Hen. How much are we talking about, exactly?”

“We offered two thousand,” Maya replied. “We know wedding bands usually ask for more, but it’s all we can afford. Weddings are stupid expensive.”

Ruby’s eyes widened, and she shot me an incredulous look. “And you said no?!”

Oh great. I could see where this was going. I shot Maya a dirty look before trying to reason with Ruby.