Chapter Five
“WE GOT A GIG!”
Jameson beamed as he dropped into the seat beside Daisy.
Her stomach lurched. She’d been bracing for this moment since the weekend—forty-eight hours of replaying every detail, every possibility. Would he act distant? Pretend nothing happened? Would it be unbearably awkward?
Apparently, her stress had been wasted. Jameson looked as casual and unbothered as ever.
“What?” she asked.
“Your brother came through for us. We’re playing at Bullets this weekend!”
Overcome with excitement, Daisy threw her arms around him. “I’m so happy for you guys!”
Realizing what she’d done, she released him almost instantly, cheeks burning. “Sorry.” She darted a glance around the half-full classroom.
“Don’t be.” His grin widened. “You can throw your arms around me anytime you want.”
She laughed nervously. “Oh really?”
“Yes, really. We’re not hiding anything. We’re just taking it one day at a time, remember?”
She nodded, though her pulse hadn’t slowed since he sat down.
So focused on him, Daisy didn’t notice Rochelle until she was standing right beside their table.
“Hey, handsome. Missed you at the lock-in. Feeling better?”
Jameson half-turned. “Uh, yeah. Much better, actually.”
Rochelle tossed her perfect blonde hair over her shoulder and leaned in close. “Good. Because I have plans for us this weekend.”
Daisy wanted to sink straight through the floor. Rochelle acted like she wasn’t even there.
“No can do.” Jameson’s tone was polite but firm. “I’ve got a busy weekend coming up. Actually, most of my weekends are booked.”
Rochelle straightened, trying not to show her irritation. “Well, if you find time in that busy schedule, pencil me in.” She sauntered off toward the back of the room.
Daisy leaned in, barely containing her smile. “I thought Sean only got you guys one gig?”
“He did.”
“But you just said—oh.” Her breath caught as realization dawned. She was his “busy.”
Jameson brushed his fingers lightly across her hand. “Yeah… oh.”
Thanks to Sean’s big mouth, word spread fast: The Kings Court were playing at Bullets Saturday night. Daisy planned to go with Anna and Ryan.
Anna had already been fully briefed on everything involving “Band Boy Kingston,” as she liked to call him. The second Daisy admitted what happened after Homecoming, Anna squealed so loud Daisy thought her eardrums might burst.
“Double D and Band Boy sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes—”
“Anna!” Daisy cringed.
Anna collapsed dramatically onto her studio floor, panting like she’d run a marathon. “Daisy, come on. A boy doesn’t spend the whole night with a girl and not even kiss her unless he’s serious. He likes you. I’d pounce on that now if I were you.”
“Anna!”
“What? Just some friendly advice.”
Daisy pretended to brush it off, but Anna’s words stuck with her all week.
When Saturday rolled around, she pulled on her tightest black jeans, a white tank, and heeled boots.
She threw a jacket over it all, equal parts to ward off the chill but also to prevent her father from commenting on how “suggestive” she looked.
The boys had practiced nonstop all week. Per Sean’s strict orders, Daisy was banned from the garage, which meant she only caught Jameson in class. They’d arrive early, sit close, whisper in stolen moments before the bell. It wasn’t nearly enough.
Her mom knocked. “Honey, Anna’s here!”
“Be right out!” Daisy finished her mascara, zipped her jacket, and headed downstairs.
She arrived just in time to hear her father’s booming voice put Ryan through an interrogation.
“Not a second later, you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Sheriff Rodgers is a close friend of mine. Don’t test me, son.”
Ryan shook his hand, pale as a ghost, then bolted for the car.
“Dad, what did you say to him?”
“Ground rules. Eleven p.m. curfew. No exceptions.”
Daisy knew better than to argue. She hugged him quickly. “Love you, Dad.”
“Love you, too. Be careful.”
Bullets was packed. A line snaked around the block, but thanks to Sean—Daisy, Anna, and Ryan walked straight in with VIP passes.
Ryan found them a table near the stage before heading off for beverages.
“This is so cool,” Anna squealed. “Your boyfriend is basically a rock star.”
“He’s not my boyfriend.”
“Whatever.”
“Stop.”
“I’m just excited for you! Honestly, I thought this would never happen.”
Daisy narrowed her eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“No offense, but you’re kind of the brooding loner type. Always locked in your studio, blasting that awful music. Crazy talented, yeah—but you don’t exactly put yourself out there.”
“My music is not awful.”
“Fine, but I just… I miss you sometimes. And I don’t want you to miss your chance with Jameson.”
Daisy sighed, softening. “Trust me. I’m trying.”
Anna grinned. “That’s my girl.”
The opening band, The Charmed Dolls, were decent enough, but Daisy’s mind was already on Jameson. She was so lost in thought she barely noticed when Anna and Ryan started a full-blown make-out session at their tiny table. Disgusted, Daisy excused herself.
She was halfway to the restroom when a hand tapped her shoulder.
“Hey, darlin’.”
Her heart skipped.
“You shouldn’t be out here. Your fans will maul you,” she teased.
Jameson smirked. “Maybe one day. Not tonight.” He laced his fingers through hers, sending an electric bolt up her arm. “Can I tell you a secret?”
“Anything.”
“I’m nervous, well, was nervous. Practically fainted when I saw the turnout tonight.” She was taken aback, surprised that the self-assured Jameson Kingston was suffering from some sort of stage fright.
He paused for a moment, in deep thought before saying, “But then I saw you in the crowd. And the nerves disappeared. I felt the same way I did that first time you watched us in the garage.”
Daisy’s cheeks warmed. “What feeling?”
“Confidence.” His voice dropped. “I may have been joking before, but now I’m most certain that you, Daisy Daniels, are the key to my success.”
“While I’m flattered, I think your voice and the fact that you play two different instruments might have something to do with it. Not to mention your face.” She laughed. “Even if you sucked, no one would care. You’re too pretty. You’re basically a walking heart attack in blue jeans.”
He chuckled, stepping closer. “Are you trying to give me a big head?”
“Is it working?”
“Certainly is.”
She rolled her eyes, but her breath caught as his hand gently brushed the side of her cheek. “You know what song comes to mind right now?”
“Hmm?” she mumbled. Afraid her voice would crack if she spoke.
“‘I Want You.’”
“The Beatles,” she whispered.
“Yep.”
He stepped even closer, gently lacing their fingers together again.
A mixture of nerves and anticipation shot through Daisy’s spine. This was it. The moment she had constantly thought about.
Resting his forehead against hers, Jameson let out a deep breath, while Daisy held on tightly to hers.
Releasing her hand, his thumb lightly traced her bottom lip.
“Daisy, I want—”
“Come on, man!”
Lenny’s voice cut through the moment. Daisy jerked back, face flaming.
“Oh, man,” Lenny muttered when he realized what he’d walked in on. “Sorry. But, Jameson—we’re up.”
Jameson sighed. “Be right there.”
Daisy stumbled for an escape. “Good luck out there. You’ll kill it.”
Before he could stop her, she hurried back toward the crowd, her heart still pounding.
Restroom forgotten, she made her way back to the table where Anna and Ryan were still at it.
They didn’t seem to notice that she had left in the first place.
Daisy didn’t mind; she was still reeling from what had just occurred in the hall.
Daisy’s throat tightened. She’d been so close.
One more second and she would’ve finally known what it felt like to kiss him.
She was also embarrassed that Lenny had caught them.
She wondered if he would tell Sean. She prayed to God Jameson would stop that from happening.
After learning that Sean had prohibited Jameson from asking her to Homecoming, she realized that, whatever they were, Sean had his reasons for keeping Jameson away from his sister.
He would not be happy to find out about their little hallway tryst and even more so about their sleepover.
Oh, please don’t be a big mouth, Lenny.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice over the loudspeaker. Frankie, the animated owner of Bullets, took the stage.
“Up next, we have quite the treat for you guys. All the way from Surrey, England, give it up for… The Kings Court!”
The guys stormed the stage to wild cheers.
Jameson took center stage, adjusting the mic to align with his mouth. “Hey, everyone! Thanks for coming out. Like Frankie mentioned, we are The Kings Court. We have a cool show for you tonight. Hope you enjoy it.”
More applause erupted as the guys began playing their first song. It was appropriately titled, “We the Kings.”
If Jameson was nervous at all, he masked it well. He owned it, every movement confident and sharp. He smiled at Daisy more than once, winked once too, and each time Anna squealed like a fangirl and squeezed her hand.
Not everyone noticed.
“OMG, he keeps looking at me,” a girl behind Daisy whispered.
“Totally. He wants you, Brittney. Let’s find him after the show.”
Anna whipped around. “Shut it, twinkle-twats. He’s looking at his girlfriend, who’s standing right here.” She jabbed a finger at Daisy.
Daisy didn’t bother correcting her this time.
“Her?” the girl sneered. “Have her boobs even come in yet?”
Anna bristled, but Daisy grabbed her hand. “Not tonight. Tonight’s about the guys, okay?”
Anna huffed but let it go.
By the end of the set, the crowd was screaming. Jameson lifted his shirt to wipe sweat from his forehead and the place nearly collapsed from the noise. Daisy couldn’t blame them. If she were a more presumptuous girl, perhaps she’d be right there with them, telling Jameson to quote, “Take it off!”
After the final song, a rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” Daisy wanted nothing more than to find Jameson and finish what they had started in the hallway. But Ryan glanced at his watch. “We’ve got twenty minutes till curfew. We’re out.”
“Okay, but let’s see the guys first.”
“No can do. I’m not in the habit of pissing off dads who know the sheriff.”
Daisy wished her father were only kidding. But in truth, Philip Daniels had been closely acquainted with Sheriff Rodgers and his entire family for years.
Ryan’s fear was valid.
She lingered one last moment, hoping to catch Jameson’s eye, but he was swallowed by the crowd backstage.
Daisy groggily awoke the next morning to loud noises and the smell of bacon wafting from the kitchen. Throwing her wild hair into a ponytail, she went downstairs to find out who was causing the ruckus.
She paused in the kitchen archway. Her parents looked up, and Sean and Jameson turned at her entrance.
“Good morning, honey,” Daisy’s mother said, setting a plate of pancakes on the island.
Seeing Jameson in her kitchen, she wanted to instantly recoil, especially while she still donned her oversized pajama shirt, but decided to act cool and continue in.
“Morning.” Daisy forced composure, sliding into a chair beside her dad, while the boys remained at the barstools.
“Where were you last night?” Sean asked, shoving a piece of bacon into his mouth.
Daisy looked in between Jameson and Sean. She didn’t suspect Lenny had blabbed their business to him… yet.
“I saw Anna and Ryan making out for like ten minutes straight,” Sean snitched.
“What?” her mother exclaimed.
“Yeah, Mom, didn’t you know? Anna is hot and heavy with Ryan Parish.”
She shook her head. “Oh, that concerns me. I thought he was just a friend. He seems like a nice boy, but he’s so much older than her.”
“Don’t go meddling, Dena. It’s their business,” Philip said to his wife, while flipping through the newspaper.
Even though her father discouraged it, Daisy was sure that her mother would be calling Anna’s mother later to discuss her unease about her daughter’s new boyfriend.
She kept her voice calm. “I was there. Then I had to leave. Some of us still have curfews.”
Her dad rumbled, “It’s different for boys, Daisy.”
“That’s not fair.”
“One day you’ll understand.”
She ignored her father’s lecture on double standards and turned toward Jameson instead. He carried his plate to the table and slid into the chair beside her, close enough that their knees brushed. “Congrats on last night,” she whispered. “You were amazing.”
“I had some good luck out there cheering me on,” he murmured.
She bit her lip to hide her smile.
Sean plopped down next to them. “The ladies were loving themselves some Jameson! Frankie said he’s almost positive he can get us a gig once a month. Even more if the turnout keeps growing.”
Sean launched into a play-by-play of the show, their mom listening eagerly while their dad dismissed it as a passing hobby. Daisy tuned it all out, aware only of Jameson beside her.
When breakfast ended, she slipped upstairs.
“Daisy,” Jameson called softly from the landing.
She hesitated. “Yeah?”
“I’m sorry about last night. About Lenny.”
“It wasn’t your fault.”
“I just hate that you looked embarrassed. I don’t want you to feel that way with me.”
Her palms grew clammy. “Do you think Lenny will tell Sean?”
“No. But he might spill it to Ky. I can’t promise he’ll keep his mouth shut.”
Her stomach dropped. “Then maybe we should… cool it. At least for now.”
“Daisy, no—”
“Jameson!” Sean’s voice boomed from the other room.
She took the out. “We’ll still be friends, okay?”
He looked like he wanted to argue, but instead gave a stiff nod. Before he could say more, she bolted up the stairs, her heart hurting even as her head told her it was the right thing.