Then There Was You Read Free Page A

witness it. Caught up in the moment, I was filled with pure elation for the young guy I used to know who was so desperate for a taste of this rock star world.
    Chris sauntered over to us, reaching his hand down to Alexis, Olivia, and Payton. The girls went wild, and I worried that Alexis might faint. I couldn’t help myself. I extended mine too. There was just something magical about touching a celebrity. It was silly, I know, but still…
    Chris’s hand grazed my fingertips. Rather than brushing by me like he had all the others, he grasped mine and stayed there. Focusing solely on me, he sang the last line of his song and held the final note for several extra seconds while the crowd went crazy, screaming, shouting, whistling, and clapping.
    Chris ignored all of it. For a few stolen moments, he seemed lost in thought, piercing me with those deep, penetrating eyes. The room disappeared around us, and just like that day in the Fairbainks cafeteria, this moment was ours . I flashed an enormous smile right before the lights dimmed. He’d accomplished everything I’d ever wished for him and more. I just hoped he knew how truly proud I was.

    The girls sang and danced all the way back to the car after the concert was over. I even joined their antics a few times. There was just something about Chris’s concert that gave me an emotional high. Proudly, we carried our souvenirs of concert T-shirts and autographed posters under our arms. It had truly been a night to remember.
    When we finally settled into my Elantra, Alexis blurted, “Mom, you never said you knew Chris King! That’s so awesome! How do you know him? Did you go to school with him?” She bombarded me with questions, still hyped-up from the concert energy.
    “Yeah, Mrs. Honeycutt,” Payton piped up from the back seat. “How do you know Chris?”
    I glanced at Alexis’s friends in the reflection of my rearview mirror, unsure of how much I wanted to divulge.
    Turning my gaze toward Alexis, who was sitting in the passenger seat beside me, I remembered the glum, deep-seated significance of my past with Chris. Swallowing hard, I stuffed the painful reminder of my ugly emotional baggage down, zipping it up tight. I never wanted Alexis to feel like the issues I had in the early months of her life were her fault in any way. Hell, I’d spent the first few years trying to overcompensate for my guilt. I reached out, smoothing her wavy, brown hair and tucking a stray piece behind her ear. “It’s a long story, sweetheart, but let’s just put it this way… Chris King and I go way back.”
    As I drove home that night, my heart was bursting. I was content, but at the same time, my thoughts were heavy as they drifted back in time. Back to a time when Chris King was the very essence of my existence—a shining light in my darkest hour. Until the day I watched painfully as he walked away from Fairbanks Juvenile Justice Center and straight out of my life.

    “That concert fucking rocked!” Tommy, my bass player, twisted off the metal beer cap and handed me the bottle. “You really know how to work a crowd,” he teased with a devilish grin, gyrating his hips to mimic my moves. “I’m sure there are some fine ass honeys already at the after-party waiting for you.” He waggled his eyebrows, trying to convince me.
    I chuckled. For the most part, women at the after-parties all looked the same to me—desperate. “You had some nice riffs, my friend,” I complimented him, ignoring his comment. Lifting the beer to my lips, I guzzled half of it.
    Jeremy plopped down on the sofa, propping his feet up on the table in front of him. “So, y’all ready to hit up the after-party? Lotsa sexy ladies out there who are ready to meet and greet the band,” he insinuated with a wink.
    I rolled my eyes. Why tonight, of all nights, was I just not feeling up to any after-party?
    Jeremy held his phone in front of him, tapping the screen with his fingers. “Sonya says she’s never been