“Yeah?” Hudson asked.
“Yeah. I’m trying to keep my shit together, I promise. There’s too much on the line.” His eyes burned into the glass, but he might as well have been looking right at me.
“Good to hear it, man,” Damon said. “We’re all proud of you, Levi. All of us.”
The atmosphere turned tense, but then the doors pinged open and we filed out in the hall.
“It’s quiet.” Hudson’s brows crinkled. “Are you sure they didn’t leave without us?”
“They’re probably still getting ready,” Levi grunted. “You know how long girls take with that kind of stuff.”
I hung in the back, letting the three of them go on ahead. Stalter shot me a knowing look as we approached him.
“Are the girls still here?”
“Yeah, they’re inside,” he said, giving nothing away.
Damon was first at the door. He opened it and stepped inside. “What the hell?” he mumbled as we all followed him. The place was silent, stepped in darkness, shadows dancing across the walls.
“They’re not—”
“SURPRISE!” Someone hit the lights and Eva, the girls, and a couple dozen guests all cheered at Damon’s arrival.
“Holy shit.” Hudson let out a low whisper as he took in the suite.
Eva had gone all out. There were decorations, a homemade bar, snacks, and a… piñata. I smiled to myself. There was even a DJ set up in the corner of the room.
“Happy birthday.” She reached us, enveloping Damon in a hug. “I hope this is okay?”
“Shit, Eva, I can’t believe you did all this... for me.”
“Hey now,” Letty chimed in, “she had help.”
“Thanks, seriously. This is...” Damon swallowed, cupping the back of his neck. “I’m speechless.”
“Gifts, we need to do gifts.” Eva grinned. She looked so fucking good in the denim mini skirt and off-the-shoulder plaid blouse. Her hair was a wild mass of curls framing her face, her smile painted bright red, and totally kissable.
“This is from me and Rafe.”
“You got a couple’s gift? Uh, whipped.” Hudson coughed loudly, earning him a clip to the ear from Letty.
“I can’t take any credit; this was all Eva.”
“Open it.” She handed Damon the box and he wasted no time tearing into it.
“Holy shit,” he breathed. “Original Fender Patent prints. How the hell did you track these down?”
“I had a little help.”
Damon flicked his eyes to me. “Don’t look at me,” I said.
“I’m not just a pretty face, you know.” Letty scowled but it melted away seconds later. “Happy birthday, Damon.”
“I’m blown away, thank you.”
I reached for Eva, pulling her back against my chest. “Thank you.” It was a whisper against her ear.
“What for?” She leaned back, tipping her face to mine, grazing my jaw with her lips.
“For being you. For loving me, and them.” I flicked my head over to where Damon was busy opening more gifts.
“They’re your family.”
Family.
It was a word that had never held a simple definition for me before. There had never been family trips to the coast, or family meals and holidays spent with loved ones. There had been me and Levi, learning to survive after our family had chewed us up and spat us out. Then when we met Damon and Hudson at the music program, our family grew. We became four. Four guys who would go on to say 'fuck you' to the rules. A group of guys who would find themselves with the world at their feet and no one to guide them right.
And then came Eva.
Whether she realized it or not, whether they realized it, she was the glue. Meeting her hadn’t been a coincidence. She came barreling into our lives at a time when things could have so easily spiraled out of control.
She changed us.
She made us better.
And there was no way I was ever letting her go.
I dropped my chin on her shoulders, watching as our friends celebrated. Someone started passing around drinks and we all toasted Damon before the DJ dropped a heavy beat and the place erupted.
“Where d'you find the DJ?” Hudson asked.
“You really have to ask?” Letty hip bumped him. “Don’t worry, he knows the deal. Signed his NDA on the way in.”
“We come bearing shooters.” Phoebe appeared with Molly in tow.
“Guys, it’s good to see you all again.”
“Looking good, Molly. Phoebe.”
The air turned thick as my brother barely looked at her.
“Here, pass them around.” Molly started handing out the shooters, oblivious to the sudden tension.
“I thought we agreed nothing too wild?” Eva grimaced, reluctantly taking one.
“Just one, to toast the birthday boy?” Molly waggled her brows.
“I like your style, Steinberg.” Hudson lifted his glass to hers.
“Too bad you won’t be sampling the goods. Ever. Again.” She smiled sweetly at him, but it was full of venom. And I realized Eva was right. Perhaps Molly was exactly the right girl to whip Hudson into shape.
“To Damon,” she said, “on three.”
“One... Two... Three. Damon.”
We all knocked back our shooters, even Eva.
“Okay, wow, that was...”
“We need to toughen you up, Angel.” Hudson hooked his arm around her neck and pulled her close. “If you’re going to tour the world with us, you need to build up some resistance.”
“W- world tour?” Her mouth fell open.
The party was in full swing now, people laughing and drinking. But the eight of us remained together, in our own little bubble.
Everyone was looking at Eva now. We hadn’t talked about what happened after the US tour ended. We still had a leg left. But Letty had dropped it out that since the Masterpiece endorsement, a world tour was looking more and more likely.
“As in outside of the country?”
Hudson exploded with laughter, the rest of us following. She was still so damn sweet and innocent.
“Well, yeah, Country.” Levi smiled, a real honest-to-god smile. “What do you say? Fancy spreading a little Hunter-Walker magic around the world?”
“I... wow.” My girl stumbled over her words. “I have no idea what to say. Alistair hasn’t said—”
“Because I was waiting for the right time to talk to you about this.” He strolled over to us. “This is really something, Eva.” He glanced over his shoulder to where everyone was having a good time.
“Oh, it was nothin’ really.” Her cheeks bloomed pink. I took her hand in mine, threading our fingers together.
“The details are still being finalized, but, yes, the label wants to take the tour global, and they want you too.”
“Ohmigod,” Molly’s shrieks filled the air.
“I... I don’t know what to say.”
“Yes, obviously. The answer is yes.”
“Molly has a point, Eva.”
“Hold the phone. Did the arrogant Black Hearts drummer, the one and only Hudson Ryker, just agree with me?”
“Jesus,” he said through gritted teeth, shaking his head.