Page 36 of Doc Rock
When Ford finished writing, he stood up in front of her, using her hairbrush as a microphone, and waited for her to begin playing. She stared at him as her fingers moved over the guitar, and he looked right back at her, singing the song about first love and heartbreak to her.
When they finished, she blinked.It wasgood.
In fact, it was fantastic.
Ford stepped forward and held his hairbrush microphone out to her.“How does itfeelto be the youngest Grammy winner in history for songwriting?”He grinned down at her.
Mai shoved it away, blushing.“Don’t be daft. It’s a good song. I’m not sure if it’ll bethat good.”
“Youknowit will.”Ford moved closer, straight into her personal space, and Mai’s breath hitched.
“I hope so.”Mai worked hard to keep her voice even and not give away how much him standing so close affected her.
When he leaned down and pushed some of her black hair behind her ear, she stopped breathing entirely. Their eyes were level, and their breath mingled.
She wasn’t sure which of them closed the distance.
A few years down the track, he would claimit washer and tease her about it.
But Mai was sureit wasboth of them, and that they'd met in the middle, his lips brushing over hers, making her drag in a sharp breath.
Ford grabbed her hand and pulled her up into his arms.
Itfeltso right to kiss him, and Mai never wanted him to let her go.
Chapter 14
Mai (20)
Eighteen years ago
Mai sat backstage at the club with Ford, Joel and Scotty and tried to keep her breathing under control.
She hated the fact that the others made going onto the stage look so effortless, while she struggled. Every time she thought of the expanding audience, her breath hitched, and her heart pounded.
Shehadbeen okay when itwasa few dozen people, but now the audiencewashundreds, and all the eyes on herweremaking it harder and harder to stand on the stage.
She'dopened her mouth a few times to tell Ford that shewasstruggling, but she saw the light in his eyes when he spoke about their gigs; she didn’t want to stifle it with talk about her struggles, as she knew he would walk away from it for her.
He would give up Midnight Thunder for her if she asked.
She couldn’t do that. You onlyhadto watch him on stage to see hewasbornto be a frontman. His voicewasincredible, with a range thathadpeople writing magazine articles comparing it to Freddie Mercury. Hewasmagnetic and could hold an audience in the palm of his hand as he led them on a musical journey with him.
She couldn’t ask him to give that up for her; she wouldn’t ask him.
So each gig, she hid her panic and phoned her mum.
“I just need to call mum before we go on,”Sie said to the band, who didn’t bat an eyelid; they thought itwasher superstition to phone her mum and teased her about it. They didn’t know itwasthe only way she could stand on the stage.
Ford grabbed hold of her hand and yanked her toward him, his grey eyes sparkling as they took her in. The noise of the other two chatting and laughing faded away, and itwasonly her and Ford.
He leaned down and kissed her gently, then growled and deepened the kiss, his hands tangling in her hair.
“Oh, my god. Will you two stop!”Joel’s disgusted voice called out.
It broke through Mai's bubble, and she pulled away from Ford. Leaning down, he put his forehead against hers and grinned into her eyes, whispering,“he’s jealous, cause he just got dumped.”
“Thanks for that reminder, mate,”Joel said dryly, giving his bandmate the finger.
