Page 27 of Safe With You

“I was making sure everything looked okay.”

She glanced around the room before looking back at me.

“It does.”

There wasn’t a trace of teasing in her voice that time.

Just certainty.

I followed her gaze.

Rachel was laughing with the woman beside her.

Denise was flipping through her notebook one last time.

The café line had finally disappeared.

The microphone was still standing.

The bookstore felt...full.

Not just with people.

With life.

For the first time all evening, there wasn’t anyone calling my name.

Just the quiet anticipation that settled over a room moments before something began.

Naomi leaned closer.

“You can breathe now.”

“I have been breathing.”

“Barely.”

She reached over and squeezed my forearm.

“You did good.”

I’d spent so much of the day thinking about everything that could go wrong that I hadn’t stopped to notice everything that had gone right.

One thing at a time.

I’d made it here.

I smoothed my hands against the front of my dress before making my way toward the microphone. The familiar knot of nerves settled low in my stomach, the same way it did before every event I hosted, no matter how prepared I was.

As I stepped onto the small platform near the front windows, conversations gradually softened. Heads turned in my direction, and someone in the back hurried to claim the last empty chair before settling beside his wife.

Even the espresso machine seemed to choose that moment to fall silent.

I looked out over the bookstore, letting my gaze drift across the room.

Every chair was filled.

“Welcome to Open Mic Night at Chapter & Charm. Whether you’re here to perform or just listen, we’re really glad you came. My name is Luna, and tonight is all about celebrating stories, poetry, music, and the courage it takes to share a piece of yourself with a room full of strangers.”