Mom had always said that tragedy was the best time because it revealed the truth of our lives. It told us who really loved us and who really didn’t give a fuck. It made us stronger and humbled us too.
One of Chucky’s daughters turned to Simone for the first time that night. I believed her name was Faith. “What’s your favorite Gio song?”
I pretended to be into my dish as I waited desperately for the answer.
Why is her opinion so important?
“Hmmm,” Simone said. “There are so many that I love, but the one that I’ve probably played at least two hundred times is Serpent.”
For some reason, I made note of that, not knowing how I would use that information for the future.
Hope and Faith screeched with joy. They happily talked Serpent and some of my other songs. After a few minutes of chatter, Faith returned her attention to Simone. “So, you sing too?”
“Yes,” Simone said. “However, I mainly write music.”
Faith opened her mouth in shock. “So, you’ll be writing Gio’s music?”
Simone stirred in her seat. “That’s the goal.”
Faith widened her eyes. “Will you replace Jason?”
Simone opened her mouth and turned to me. “While no one could ever replace Jason, I think Gio and I are going to try to make some amazing music.”
“Oh my God.” Faith went to her phone.
Chucky took it from her. “No, remember the rules. No social media. No announcements. No twigging and tweeting and whatever else. This was a private invitation from Mr. Ferraro.”
I nodded at Chucky. “Thank you. I’m not big on being out in the public right now.”
Appearing embarrassed, Faith took her phone back and put it in her pocket back. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I just got so excited. I’m the President of GioKnights here and—”
“Oh.” I tapped the napkin against my mouth. “Well, why didn’t you say so? GioKnights get special permissions.”
Faith froze, unsure of what to do. “We do?”
“You do.” I rose from the table, walked over to her and her sisters, and bent down. “Let’s take a quick selfie.”
The other sisters shrieked.
“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Faith mumbled. “Okay. I’ll just…”
Her fingers shook as she held up the phone in front of us. I ended up having to get the phone and take it. When I handed it back to her, I asked, “What do you want to say?”
“I-I don’t know.” Faith stared up at me as I towered over her.
I winked. “Maybe you can say that you all are hanging with Gio for the holidays.”
Faith gasped.
“And that I’m working on music and you’re so excited to hear the next album.”
“Y-yes.”
“And of course,” I winked, “hashtag GioKnights.”
“Of course.” She typed into her phone.
Chucky mouthed “thank you” to me.
I returned to my seat.
Ru sipped on his coffee and watched Simone nibble on pumpkin pie.
“Have you been writing since you’ve been here?” Ru asked her. “I know you’ve been recovering, but I’m just wondering?”
“I played around with a few lyrics, but nothing yet,” she said.
“Okay.” Ru nodded. “Do you need anything?”
She gestured around my huge dining room. “I’m good to go.”
Ru turned to me. “How many songs do you think you’ll need to finish the album?”
“I haven’t decided,” I said.
“How long do you think this will take?” Ru asked.
“You’ve been making albums for years,” I said. “You know there’s no set time.”
Ru set his coffee down. “I have plans for Simone when she returns.”
Simone paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. “You do?”
Ru straightened in his chair as if he were about to announce something grand. “After this work with Gio, you’ll be ready to launch your solo career. We’ll need you in the studio—”
“I have a studio here where she can work on anything she wants,” I interrupted.
“Thank you, Gio,” Ru said, “but it would also be good for her to have a space that she can call her own.” He turned back to her. “What do you think, Simone?”
I waited for her response and couldn’t imagine her leaving to go off to some other studio she’d have to pay for. As far as I was concerned, we could work on both albums here. She didn’t need to leave. In fact, I didn’t appreciate the new topic of conversation at all. I’d already been trying to figure out how to keep her in my bedroom for more nights, and Ru was already trying to entice her back to New York.
She looked at both of us and then ate the piece of pie, taking her sweet time to enjoy it. When she was finished, she said, “Let’s just focus on everything, one song at a time.”
“I like that idea,” I said.
“You would,” Ru muttered.
Simone gave me a look, and I saw something in her gaze. Need. Desire. A craving so bad she couldn’t keep it out of her eyes.