Page 43 of California Love Songs (The Davenports, #4)

Chapter Thirty-One

D amien had the fun of seeing Opal enjoy her first ride in a private jet, courtesy of Crimson Palm Records.

No security lines, no cramped seats, just polished leather, soft lighting, and their own flight attendant offering everything from champagne to a full breakfast. They both declined, but Opal accepted a cappuccino and he sipped a green tea while the low hum of the engines pushed her toward a new chapter.

He had a feeling that she’d have her own PJ before long, but for now it was kind of fun to show her what it was like to travel in style.

She sat quietly by the window, eyes wide with a mix of disbelief and wonder as they soared above the clouds.

She kept her guitar case close, resting it beside her like a trusted friend.

All through the short flight to LA and the longer drive through gnarly traffic, Damien focused on keeping Opal calm.

She knew what was waiting for her—all-or-nothing meetings with record executives, people she’d only read about in interviews or seen in liner notes.

The kind of people who could change everything.

She was already brimming with a wild, quiet hope.

So, he avoided talking about his own big hopes for her future or all the things he thought she could do, and instead asked her questions about her past. About her boyfriend and her family.

He relied on those things to keep himself grounded, and he suspected the young musician was like that, too.

It worked. He could see her relaxing as she talked about home.

She even pulled up some pictures of her and her boyfriend, and her folks with the family dog.

Nate was a busy man. He met Opal, told her he liked her stuff, and whisked them off to a dinner with a bunch of global execs.

She was nervous enough that Damien was glad to be there—even if it was the kind of event he hated—and able to tell the people around the table how hard she worked and how talented she was.

“Can’t wait for you to play for us tomorrow, Opal. We did okay with this guy. I’m hoping we can do something similar for your career.”

“Thank you,” she said, in a voice close to a whisper.

Wednesday morning, Crystal woke up, blinked, and thought, “Why is this day different?”

And then she remembered it was her birthday.

Today she was thirty. She glanced over at the other pillow and wished—longed, in fact, just for a moment—that Damien was there, that she could roll over and kiss him and begin her birthday in the best way she knew.

But Damien was doing something really important today, and not even for his own career, but for the sake of someone else.

He was being so generous that she decided she could be generous too, and wished the two musicians a successful day.

He’d said he would end the night in her bed and she believed him.

So she got up, put on a pot of coffee, and had a long, relaxing shower.

For once in her life, she decided to take a slower morning before heading in to work.

Today would be all about appreciating what she had and taking it easy.

When she was dressed, the calls and messages from her friends and family began to flood in.

Just before nine, Damien’s name flashed up on her phone and she grinned.

“Happy birthday, babe.” And then she was treated to a duet as he and Opal sang “Happy Birthday.” They sounded wonderful. She laughed and asked him how it was going.

“Dinner last night went really well. I mean, seriously well. We’ve got more official meetings today. Opal and I are both feeling pretty good about how things are going. I think there could be a record deal before the end of the day.”

Crystal was so excited, she squealed a little bit. “Tell Opal I think she’s amazing. It would be the best birthday present ever to find out she got a record deal.”

Damien laughed. “Don’t speak too soon. You’ll find a little something in your kitchen. In the sugar canister.”

Now it was Crystal’s turn to laugh out loud.

“But I’ve never used the sugar canister.

” She had a matching set of blue canisters on the counter.

The coffee, the tea, and the flour were full, but she never took sugar in anything.

If her friends came over and needed some, she had packets tucked away in the cupboard that she hadn’t bothered to decant into the canister.

With warmth in his voice, he said, “I know. I know you, Crystal Lopez. I figured it was the one place you’d never look.”

Then she heard a voice in the background and he said, “Gotta go. The driver’s here. I’ll see you later.”

By the time the car pulled up in front of the towering glass music headquarters, Opal was holding it together, but Damien could feel her strain.

As they rode up in the elevator, he reminded her to stay grounded, be herself, and listen to what the execs said before rushing in. He put his hands on her shoulders. “I believe in you. You’ve got this.”

“Do I look okay? I just figured it was best to dress like myself, but now that I’m here, maybe I should have worn something fancier?” She smoothed down her denim skirt and white camisole, plucking at a charm necklace distractedly. “My boyfriend gave me this necklace. I wore it for luck.”

Damien chuckled and gestured at his own ripped jeans and plain T-shirt. “We’re rock ’n’ roll stars, kid,” he said, hoping to make her laugh. “Suits are not our thing.”

Opal grinned. The innate belief she had in herself that he’d been able to see all along, and the knowledge that she had songs to sing and stories to tell, began to blot out the anxiety.

She took a big breath, tossed her long blonde hair over her shoulders, and nodded. “You’re right. I’ve got this.”

So when the elevator doors opened, she didn’t look like a nervous wreck. She looked like a young woman who was ready to take on the world.

Crystal ran straight to the sugar canister.

Inside was a gold-wrapped gift box about the size and shape to hold a pen.

When she pulled off the paper, she discovered a box from her favorite jeweler in Carmel-by-the-Sea.

Her heart was actually pounding when she opened it and found a gorgeous diamond tennis bracelet winking up at her.

She would so much rather have opened it with Damien and let him fasten it around her wrist. But there was no way she wasn’t going to put it on.

She did it herself and then held out her arm to admire the twinkle of the stones.

It was so beautiful—by far the most beautiful piece of jewelry she’d ever owned.

Damien knew her taste and it was perfect.

Erin called soon afterward, and even though she’d yet to spill the whole story to her best friend, she had to tell her about the bracelet.

“I can’t wait to see it,” Erin said, with her customary tact.

If Damien had let things slip to his youngest sister, then Erin wasn’t about to give anything away.

Crystal could tell Erin was patiently waiting for her to talk about Damien in her own time.

She didn’t know why she hadn’t yet. Maybe there was still a part of her that didn’t believe it was real, or that things would actually work out.

Maybe it was part of protecting herself from that reality.

But right now, things felt so good between her and Damien that Crystal decided she’d tell her friend everything. Later. At girls’ night.

Erin said, “I’ll pick you up at seven this evening and drive you over to Jay’s place. That way, you can drink as much champagne as you want.”

Crystal wasn’t a big drinker at the best of times, but she appreciated that Erin was giving her the opportunity to go wild if she wanted to. And who knew? Maybe she would. She’d certainly enjoy a glass or two.

When she arrived at work, her staff also sang “Happy Birthday” and she was treated to a beautiful cake. Thirty candles were crammed onto the buttercream frosting, but she managed to blow them all out without embarrassing herself. And then she got on with her day.

It was a good day too. She successfully secured a speedy viewing for a venue that she thought would be perfect for Mila’s wedding, then caught up with paperwork.

She treated herself by leaving work early and having her hair and nails done.

She so rarely took the time to pamper herself.

She admired her bouncy blow-dry and shiny red nails in the rearview mirror as she drove home.

She thought about just wearing comfy jeans and a shirt to have dinner with the girls.

No. You only turn thirty once. She chose one of her favorite dresses, a floaty number in greens and blues, and pretty sandals to show off her pedicure.

The outfit was perfectly finished with her new tennis bracelet.

She couldn’t stop staring at the way the diamonds caught the light.

Erin picked her up and, to Crystal’s surprise, also looked particularly dressed up. She’d gone a little heavier on the makeup than usual and wore a black dress that was definitely new.

“You look so nice,” Crystal said.

“Thanks,” Erin replied. “It’s my best friend’s special day. I wanted to dress up—and why shouldn’t we, even when it’s just us girls?”

“That’s what I was thinking too,” Crystal agreed.

They drove a little way and then Erin smacked her forehead. “I left my favorite sweater at Damien’s place. Do you mind if we run by and pick it up? I want to wear it tomorrow.”

“No, of course not.”

It felt funny to drive into Damien’s place, knowing he wasn’t there. As they drew near the house, Erin said, “Do you mind just running in and getting it? Then I don’t have to park. It’s the blue sweater. I left it in the living room. I’ll text Mila and make sure she’s got the champagne chilling.”

“Yeah, sure,” Crystal said, her mind already on her evening ahead, and that cold, crisp glass of champagne.

She headed up the path and walked into the kitchen, allowing herself a moment to wish Damien was at the stove, cooking her a special birthday dinner. She would have loved to have him throw his arms around her and kiss her in that sexy, melting way of his, but he’d be here later. She could wait.

She walked into the darkened living room, looking for the blue sweater, when suddenly the lights turned on and a bunch of people jumped out, yelling, “Surprise!”

She gasped, shock coursing through her body, and stared open-mouthed as the Davenport clan and all her friends jumped, crawled, and leaped out from curtains, closets, and furniture.

It was like an explosion of glitter. The room had been decorated with gold, silver, and purple streamers and a disco ball hung from the high ceiling, showering everyone with its flickering, shimmering light.

Everyone had dressed in sparkles and sequins to match the gaudy décor.

There were beautiful bouquets of pink and purple flowers everywhere and glitter balloons to match.

She burst into happy, shocked laughter and before she could open her mouth to speak, Erin came up behind her, laughing.

Mila, grinning, stepped forward from where she’d been hiding behind a couch and said, “You were totally surprised, weren’t you?

I knew we’d get you.” She grasped Crystal’s hands and squeezed them tight.

Crystal, who had organized more surprise parties than she could count, realized she had been completely blindsided. Instinctively, she glanced around, hoping against hope that Damien might be there, but of course he wasn’t. And that was fine.

His brothers, sisters, and parents were, however, and loads of Crystal’s friends—those she’d had since childhood, from salsa dancing, from old jobs, and even a couple of her employees who had said goodbye and wished her a good evening only a couple of hours earlier.

They’d got her good. Crystal felt suddenly overwhelmed by the love so evident in the room. She was so lucky to have so many wonderful people in her life.

Erin put a tiara on her head, while Mila hung a gold boa around her neck.

And then the music started, a funky disco beat filling the room.

A lot of effort had gone into planning this—she more than anyone knew how hard it was to organize a surprise party. Where had they all parked? Who had managed to get everyone in place in time, and so well hidden?

Mila checked her watch and said, “I’ll let the caterers in.” She headed outside and soon Crystal’s favorite catering company was setting up a buffet in Damien’s kitchen. Every single detail had been thought of. She was so touched.

When Crystal instinctively headed toward the catering staff, Erin stopped her. “Oh no you don’t. You’re the guest of honor. No trying to organize anything. Tonight is all about you.”

Finn came forward holding a tray of champagne and offered Crystal a glass. He was dressed to go to a disco and he looked magnificent. His usually brooding dark eyes were full of life as he gave her a mock bow and continued into the living room with his tray.

Howie gave her a big bear hug. “Happy birthday, sweetheart.” He was dressed like Elvis in his Vegas days.

She sipped champagne and enjoyed being the person celebrated for once, instead of the person with the clipboard and the schedule to worry about. Her tennis bracelet was greatly admired. And she had a wonderful time chatting to people, accepting congratulations.

That is, until she saw Mila and Erin arguing.

The two sisters stood in one corner of the room and by their hand gestures and expressions, she knew something was wrong.

She couldn’t have arguments on her birthday.

She headed toward them, confident in her ability to defuse their sisterly disagreements, but stopped in her tracks as she heard Mila say, “I’m going to kill him.

He promised he’d be here. I can’t believe he’s letting her down. He promised us.”

Erin replied, “He tried his best. Obviously he’s been held up in LA. He’ll be here when he can.”

Mila shook her head, fury on her face. “But we have a timetable to keep. He said he’d sing ‘Happy Birthday’ at nine o’clock. It’s nearly nine now.”

Crystal walked quietly away without them even realizing she’d been close enough to overhear. Disappointment swelled in her heart where, seconds before, love had been trustingly nesting.