Page 133 of Fire

“Like ALS?” Zander’s face pales.

“No.” I shake my head. “Nothing that severe. This only affects my ability to play the bass. It only affects my right hand.”

“Are you serious?” Darius looks wrecked. I’ve never seen him so serious and solemn. It’s weird as fuck.

“I wish I weren’t,” I reply. “Zara and I met with a neurologist yesterday, who confirmed it. I’m starting treatment, but I can’t guarantee how long I’ll be able to play at my current level, if at all. You’d be safer going with someone else as Evans’s backup. I’m too risky.”

The whole table falls silent, and I wait for it.

The apologies. The sympathetic glances. The relief that it’s not them…

I wouldn’t blame them for any of it.

“Our offer still stands,” Asher says, and I hear Zara gasp.

I look up at him in surprise. “Are you all crazy? Did you not just hear what I said?”

“We did.” Darius nods. “We just don’t care.”

“We care,” Evans interjects, waving his hands and giving Darius a sharp glare. “What this tosser is trying to say is that it doesn’t matter to us.”

“You’re family,” Asher states. “We take care of our family.”

“Yeah, man,” Zander agrees. “You’re stuck with us.”

I hear Zara sniffle, and I turn to see a tear trickling down her cheek. I catch it, and she smiles happily up at me.

“Fucking hell,” I mutter. “The woman I love is here. I wasn’t going anywhere anyway. Might as well play some music while I’m here.”

“That’s the spirit!” Darius cheers.

“I’ll take it.” Asher shrugs.

Everyone congratulates me, and hugs are exchanged. Elena and Zara both cry. The guys dump water bottles on Evans’s head as a welcome-home tribute. Darius eats five bags of chips. Ridge finally puts down his phone, but only to come over and tell me my contract will be coming soon.

All business, that guy.

I wrap an arm around Zara’s shoulder, feeling lighter than I have in months, despite having one of the hardest weeks in my life.

And it’s all due to the people in this room.

A techie sticks his head in the room and says, “Sound check in twenty, guys.”

Evans and I turn to one another.

“How do you want to do this?” I ask, wrapping an arm around Zara’s shoulder. “You wanna rotate? Or work out a schedule?”

He shrugs, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Rock, paper, scissors?”

“Tonight, you’re both playing,” Asher announces, much to our surprise. “We’ll figure out the logistics during sound check, but this is one announcement we are not delaying.”

“Amen to that,” Zander mutters.

Asher heads out, and the rest of the guys follow close behind, patting me on the back and congratulating me again.

Soon, it’s just Zara and me.

I pull her into my arms, feeling like the luckiest damn person on the planet. I know the road ahead will be scary and uncertain, but if there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s her.