Page 88 of Second to None

But no—Lee always hasconditions. “One more thing,” he says, holding up a finger like a teacher. “You unpack your school bag all by yourself while Cass and I wake up properly and get dressed. And you start finding things like flour and milk that we’ll need for the pancakes, and you line them up in the kitchen.”

That’s fair, I guess. I nod very seriously to show I’m good with that and start walking away. But then I hear Lee’s voice go all soft and teasing, like when grown-ups think you’ve left the room and can’t hear them anymore. They always forget I haveexcellenthearing.

“Guess my warm welcome will have to wait until tonight, huh?” Lee says.

“Worth the wait,” Cass replies in a voice so mushy I could pour it over my pancakes like syrup.

If Uncle Mason were here, he’d definitely point at them and laugh. He always says they’re embarrassing, but he’s smiling when he says it, so I know he’s joking. He thinks they’re brilliant, really.

I slip out of the room properly this time, and just before I close the door, I hear Lee giggling like he’s five.

Totally weird, grown-ups.

IV. CASS

London, Saturday, March 20th

I used to think being on stage was as alive as I’d ever get. The seconds before were like the countdown to a skydive, hatch open and wind clawing at my clothes, vertigo pulling at me. And then—an explosion of stage lights, the world flattened into a blinding wall of color and sounds, the roar of the crowd pressing against my ribs in one endless moment. Thousands of people, all here for me—a wave of pure energy to lift me to the skies.

I didn’t get nervous.

Today, I was. Because this was my opening show.

“It’s one thing being a poster boy they can pin to their walls, Lee.” I tugged on my gold-sequined vest, hanging open over my chest. Maybe I should have gone for something simpler after all. “But what if now they’ll actuallylistenand realize I’m just… fine. Like, technically sound, but far from magic. Not worth the fuss.”

“Cass.Babe.” Levi’s face did that thing where it went all soft, only we were in public so he tried to control it. “They’re still here for your body. You came out; you didn’t suddenly transform into a soggy potato.”

I frowned. “But?—”

“No, okay. I’mjoking.” He glanced around us, then took my elbow to pull me a little further to the side.

With only minutes to showtime, the backstage area was a beehive, my band already gathered in a little group that included my new guitar player who, with his second audition, had blown me away. Jace was huddled with Cosma, clearly more comfortable discussing her performance just earlier than he was interacting with all those strangers buzzing about. I knew how he felt about crowds, so the fact he’d come made me stupidly emotional. It was the kind of day when my coffee going lukewarm made me tear up, though.Get it together.

“Okay.” Levi leaned in, the dim light sapping his eyes of color, voice gone serious. “Listen to me, love. Yes, you’re easy on the eyes, and that’s a big draw for a lot of fans. But also, you’re good. You’re fuckingamazing, and evenPitchforkloved the new album. By their standards, anyway.”

I inhaled, the air thick with excitement. “You really think so?”

“I know so.” His tone was so sure that something in me cracked a little.

“Thank you.”

“Just the truth.” He sent me a sweet smile, one of those he hid from the world, reserved for a chosen few. “And just so we’re clear? Yes, you’re hot. But it’s not even in the top ten of why I love you.”

My chest expanded on a breath that tasted like cotton candy. “No?”

“No.” His eyes crinkled at the corners. “Don’t get me wrong—you’re fit. Objectively, annoyingly fit. But it’s the way you listen, how you make people feel like they matter. The way you remember all the names of Emmy’s toys, and how you still look at me like I hung the stars.” He brushed his thumb along my bottom lip, eyes heavy. “It’s that you still get scared sometimes, but you don’t run. You show up. It’s all that and more—notthe jawline.”

Jesus, and now I was blinking back a soppy swell of emotions. It wasn’t like I didn’t know, kind of, but…God.

“So you’ll still love me when my hair and abs are gone?” I asked, voice gone stupidly raspy.

“Yes.” No hesitation. “Now go out there and show them what you’ve got, babe. I’ll be right here, cheering you on.”

“I love you,” I said, so simple, but it thrummed in my bones and behind my ribs, like standing right next to the toll of a church bell.

“I know.” Another smile, then he gave me a gentle shove. “Now go. Bond with your band. Be amazing.”

I swallowed, nodded, jerked him in for a fast, hard kiss. Then I stepped back, opening myself to the expectant ebb and swell of the crowd, pure energy washing across my skin.

Showtime.