She heard Jay say her name on stage, heard her own singing voice a little raw and breathy from the speaker array, her laughing face filling the video screens.
It came roaring back with a vengeance that could stop her heart, if she didn’t use it to stop Jay’s first.
TWENTY
Playing Evie’s song on stage was a last-minute decision. Jay had dodged questions about the woman at his side all tour because management said it was a distraction he didn’t need. Blah, blah, it was better that female fans thought he was single, blah, blah.
Even Mum agreed, although he could see she was torn. She kept touching him and hugging Evie.
Evie said she preferred being a mystery, so that settled it and she’d had fun with wigs and sunglasses to give the paps something to shoot, but it didn’t sit right with him.
He wanted to declare his love and it was a criminal act not to share Evie’s talent with the world. Especially as she was writing new stuff often now.
He had the recording he’d made of her that first night she’d picked up Suzy Q. It was raw, perfectly imperfect, and her talent shone through. Paired with footage of Evie he’d shot on his phone as they messed about in each city, she would be the surprise star of World’s End’s last show of the Australian tour.
“Sydney, you’re a trip,” he growled into the mic at the end of a bracket. He waited out the shouts. “I’m sorry it took so long to get it together and come back home.” More cheering. “Before we finish up tonight, I’ve got something I want to share with you.”
There was heckling. He couldn’t make it all out, but he knew it was there. Crude suggestions mostly. “Now play nice, because if you think I’ve already opened my veins for you up here, you’ve got a surprise coming.”
There was a boom tish from the drum kit and he went on. “You see, I left town because I lost my love.”
“He was devastated,” said Tex, dropping to his knees and making his guitar wail. It went on and on until Tex was lying on the stage, legs kicking in a protracted death scene and everyone was laughing.
“Yeah, it was sad,” Jay said, and waited while the crowd played along making aw sounds. “It was my fault too. The whole reason we’re named World’s End is because that’s how I felt when I lost my girl. Like my whole world had come to an end.” There was more shouting, and he had to pause.
“The thing is, I got a second chance.” A murmur started to build. “I’m standing here tonight declaring my love for the one girl who has always had my number.” Without turning, he knew vision of Evie filled the screens behind him and the murmur became a roar.
“You think she looks good, you should hear how she sounds when she writes her own songs. This is my wild thing, my world’s end. This is Evelette Violet Tice.”
The stage lights dropped him and the band into darkness and Evie’s voice rang out into the night.
And the fans ate it up. It was a huge highlight to introduce the love of your life to fifty-thousand strangers on stage and God knows how many watching the television broadcast. And a special pleasure that had him throwing everything he had left at their show close to know they wanted more of her.
He came off stage after two encores, adrenaline still burning in his blood, eyes only for Evie, his car waiting so he could get them out of here and be alone with her as soon as possible.
He was ill-prepared for Abel’s fury.
“What the fuck was that, you bastard?” Abel shoved him so hard he almost lost his footing. Isaac helped out, jerking him upright and into the path of Oscar’s punch. It caught him on the shoulder and spun him backwards.
He came back, fists swinging, shouting incoherently, utterly bewildered. Security would’ve stepped in, but Grip got there first.
“Fucking stop,” Grip said, putting himself between Jay and Abel. He held a hand up to stop security moving in. “Family fight,” he said. “Tell them to ba
ck off, Jay.”
He did with a nod, the three uniformed men remaining close enough to intervene if things got more out of control. They were already way out of order.
“What’s the problem here?” he said.
“How could you do that to her, you son of a bitch?” Abel said.
Jay shook his head, his brains rattling. What was up Abel’s arse? Where was Evie? Abel tried to get to him again, but Grip held him off.
“She would never want that,” Isaac said.
“You don’t love her if you don’t know that,” Abel said.
“You self-aggrandizing fuck,” said Oscar.