Page 166 of Dirty Like Zane
Then I belted out, “OOOH! DARLING…!” and the band launched into our cover of The Beatles’ “Oh!Darling.”
Katie and Amber applauded as I serenaded Maggie, smiling all the way. Maggie just sat there with her fist pressed to her mouth for pretty much the whole song, her gray eyesglistening.
Seth and Jesse came over and stood on either side of the girls as they played. Through the whole song, I sang my ass off for Maggie with heart, soul, and tongue-in-cheek, and I put everything I felt for her intoit.
We were in a stadium with over forty thousand people… but for a few moments there… it was justus.
Maggie.
Me.
I sang until Katie was crying though her smile and a tear streaked down Amber’s cheek. They both had an arm around Maggie, who just sat there lookingstunned.
At the end of it, the roar of the crowd was pretty much deafening. Katie flung herself into Jesse’s arms and Amber bolted in the direction of Dylan’s drumkit.
Maggie got up a little slower, looking unsteady. I scooped her up into my arms as the stage lights wentdown.
“You mad at me?” I said into her ear. I knew it was a risk, that she might be. We didn’t talk about this. We never agreed this was the way we were goingpublic.
But fuck it. This was a huge part of who I was, and she was just gonna have to get used toit.
Maggie made plans, and I loved her forthat.
But sometimes… I just had to gorogue.
Not like she didn’t know it when she marriedme.
She snuggled into me, holding me tight. “No, Zane,” she said in my ear. “I’m notmad.”
Well thankfuck…
We headed offstage and I pulled her into a dark corner backstage, ignoring everyone else. She was still clinging to me. I slid my mouth over hers, and we just stood like this for a long time. We kissed and kissed, murmuringI love youback and forth, until I had to go back outonstage.
“I gotta go kick ass on ‘Blackout,’” I told her. “But I’ll see you here after theencore.”
“Yeah,” she said. “See youhere.”
Then we kissed again, and I let her go, heading back out to the stage. When I glanced back, Maggie was still there. She gave me a little wave and a look of raw wonder with tears in hereyes.
Pretty sure it was the first time my “rock star” status had ever actually dazzledher.
I just grinned tomyself.
It was also the first time I could remember ever walking out onstage feeling so damn happy… I didn’t even have any room left to feel self-doubt or any of that othermindfuckery.
Justhappy.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Maggie
Six weekslater…
“Katie,seriously. Let’s get this show on theroad.”
I glanced back at her but she was playing on her phone, yetagain.
Fuckme.
