Brand New Sky

by Heidi Hutchinson

  Sway's hair was not in its customary ponytail. Instead, it swung free and wavy to his shoulders. His blue eyes brightened when he saw her smile and he reached a hand up to brush her own hair out of her eyes.

  When she'd showered last night she hadn't bothered to dry it before going to bed, so its slight wave had been allowed to do its own thing. It tumbled freely down her back and arms, slightly covering her face until Sway had moved it.

  “I like this,” he said softly, his fingers still in her hair. “You should leave your hair down more often.”

  Ryan rolled her eyes. “It's so thick and heavy. Constantly in my face.”

  He dropped his hand and his eyes traveled over her features. “You look refreshed.”

  “I am,” she agreed, then nodded to the black Expedition still parked across the street. “How was your slumber party?”

  Sway's cheeks flushed and he looked to his feet as he smiled shyly.

  “What is that?” Ryan asked, grinning. “Are you blushing? Why on earth would you blush?”

  Sway chuckled and shook his head. “It's—” he cleared his throat and rolled his lips inward. “They came down for my birthday.”

  Ryan started speaking before she had a handle on the thoughts that came out. “You can have the rest of that cake. I can actually make another cake if you want. In fact, I should just make a new one. Unless you'd rather have a bought cake, made by professionals—”

  Sway's deep laughter cut her off in mid-sentence. “No, please don't worry about that.”

  Ryan shrugged one shoulder, the over-sized sweater falling to the side and exposing bare skin and the thin strap of her black tank top. Sway's eyes dropped to that spot and he sobered. “I'm never prepared for the big moments,” she said softly.

  His eyes lifted to hers. “It's just a birthday, Ryan.”

  “It's your birthday,” she countered without thinking. Again.

  His mouth got soft, so soft she was tempted to reach out and touch it. Instead, she stared at it, belatedly realizing what she had implied with her words. Now he was going to think that she was a crazy fangirl who thought more about him than she actually did. Well, that was only particularly true. She actually was thinking about him way more than she should, but that didn't make her crazy.

  Wait.

  Yes, it did.

  “I just meant that you've—” she started to say calmly. Because too much explanation was better than not enough, right?

  “Don't do that,” he stopped her.

  She frowned, feeling her face heat, but not knowing why. “Do what?”

  “Don't take things like that away from me.” Sway breached protocol again by brushing a strand of hair off of her mostly bare shoulder. “I came over here to check on you and to invite you to join us today in whatever these idiots have going on.”

  He was careful with his fingers and made sure to avoid touching her skin before dropping is hand back to his lap. It should have made her feel more comfortable. But she found herself slightly disappointed.

  “What do they have planned?” she asked, trying to avoid her ridiculous under and over reactions to his movements, words, and overall presence.

  He took a drink of his coffee and glanced at Tawny's house. “I have no idea. The girls are driving in today. It could be anything.”

  Something profoundly alarming stole into her mind. “Girls?” she asked, attempting to sound casual, relaxed, and unaffected. Females made up more than half of the world's population. Women were everywhere; most of her neighbors were women. She had zero reason to care that humans carrying the double x-chromosome were “driving in today.”

  Zero. Reason.

  Not one rational thing lent to the discomfort in her intestines.

  “Yeah. Lenny, Lucy, Clarke, and Zelda.”

  Four women. Suddenly Ryan wished she was more interested in celebrity gossip so she knew who these people were. But four was good, right? Four meant that one wasn't for Sway.

  Holy crap! What was she thinking?! No, no, no, no, no, that wasn't even a thing. That was a moment of complete and total insanity.

  Time to reengage the brain and deactivate the crazy.

  “Cool,” she said, taking a drink of her coffee and looking the opposite direction where Clive was sniffing around the neighbor's rock garden.

  “So, do you want to hang out with us today?” Sway asked.

  Ryan took a breath and tried to appear nonchalant. “I don't want to get in the way. If they have something planned, then maybe I should stay out of the way.” Plus, that was a hell of a lot of people to suddenly be hanging out with.

  She let her eyes drift slowly back to him and he waited to reply until he had her full attention again.

  “It's my birthday, Ryan. I want you there. I don't care what they want.”

  “Sway, that's rude.” She tried to sound sweet, she tried to sound convincing. And she almost had it too.

  “Tell me if you want to be with me on my birthday,” he said earnestly, his normal playfulness gone. It was replaced with a firm yet vulnerable heartfelt plea. One she couldn't pretend away. He was going to force her to make a definitive statement.

  If things were normal, meaning if Ryan was thinking like herself and she had never met Sway ever in her life and he was just a random boy with blue eyes and gorgeous lips and rebellious hair, she would politely decline his invitation and go back to living her life that did not involve rock stars at all.

  But nothing was normal. Things hadn't been normal since she had looked outside of her existence and had accidentally connected with a man of unknown intentions. It was that initial eye contact that had sabotaged her linear thinking. Because there was more in his eyes than she could ever have anticipated. He was mystery and danger and something else. Something undefinable. All rolled into one unexpected person. And it was that eye contact that was currently compelling her to answer.

  “Yes. I want that.”

  It was a whisper. It was a terrified, small sound, one that she wasn't proud to make because she would much rather make a forceful declaration and own her decision, as foolish as it was.

  Sway didn't move for several seconds. He just stared at her, his eyes soft, his perfect lips turned up slightly on the ends.

  She held her breath. Not afraid, not excited, not anything.

  She was nothing.

  His eyes traveled over her face one more time and he took a breath, letting it out slowly with a content hum.

  “Happy birthday to me.”

  Chapter 9

  Wanted Man

  “I don't think I understand what's going on.”

  Lenny cleared her throat and her eyes darted to the review mirror where they connected with Lucy's, who was on her phone.

  “So they're not dating?” Lucy asked Blake, pressing her fingers to the center of her forehead and closing her eyes.

  “What? Who's not dating?” Zelda asked from the seat next Lucy.

  Lenny had been driving for a little over an hour and they were almost to Hartford. After picking up Clarke at the airport last night, they'd all crashed at Luke and Lenny's house, gotten up early, and began the journey to Sway's (hopefully) new home town.

  When he'd announced earlier in the year that he was planning on moving to Connecticut to be closer to Miles, the band had supported him all the way. Sway being a responsible adult? Hells yeah.

  But that didn't mean they were all dealing with the change in their own way. You can support someone and still be apprehensive about how that future is going to look.

  “Is she going to be joining us?” Lucy asked. “Well, Blake, sweetheart, what do you know?”

  Lenny chewed on the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing.

  “Right. We're gonna be there soon. We'll just talk then. Love you, too.”

  Lenny's eyes darted up to Lucy in the mirror again. “Have we found the final member of the band?” she asked.

  Lucy rolled her brown eyes. “I have no idea. Blake was making no sense
. He was in the bathroom and talking too fast for me to understand. Apparently Sway has a female.” Lucy shrugged one shoulder and shook her head. “I don't know anything else.”

  “I really hope he likes his surprise,” Zelda said, her bright smile lighting up the entire backseat.

  “He will,” Clarke replied confidently.

  ***

  “I can't just leave town for a week,” Ryan said solidly. She saw the slight crease in Sway's brow. “Don't misunderstand. I'm not taking back what I said earlier. I do want to be with you for your birthday.” She waved a hand at Clive. “But I have a dog. He's big and he eats all the time. He's not a cat. I can't just have someone check on him once a day and call it good. Clive needs walks and social interaction or he'll die of a broken heart.”

  Clive, having heard his name, came to stand beside his master. He pushed her hand with his nose until she scratched behind his ears and then he dropped his heavy body to the floor at her feet.

  Ryan and Sway were standing in her living room. He'd come back over to tell her to pack for a week because they were all going on a road trip.

  All of them.

  The rock stars, their... women. And Ryan.

  Except not Ryan.

  Because logistically, it just wasn't possible.

  “And anyway,” she continued, smoothing her hair down and behind her ears, “you're supposed to be house sitting for Tawny.”

  Sway ran a hand through his hair that he'd left loose today. “I already took care of that. I mostly have to be back by next week to feed the sea monkeys.”

  Ryan let that freakish statement sink in before shaking her head. “Still. I can't leave for a week.” She puckered her lips and widened her eyes. “So...”

  Sway took a deep breath and she could tell by the furrow on his brow that he wasn't happy.

  “Please don't take this personally,” she said softly.

  He swallowed and glanced around the room, his eyes settling briefly on Clive. “Is there someone who could take your dog for a week? A friend? Someone you trust?”

  Ryan knew she could ask Blythe. Blythe and Shayla would take Clive in a heartbeat. They loved dogs. Probably more than they liked most people. But that wasn't the point. The point was that Sway had gone from asking her to spend a day with him to leaving her life for a week.

  She didn't like surprises.

  She also didn't like last minute schedule changes. But she wasn't about to mention any of that.

  “Here's the thing,” Sway interrupted her already planned out denial. He rested both hands on his hips. “I'm afraid that if I leave for a week, you're going to take that time to rebuild whatever walls I've already knocked down. When I come back, it'll be worse than starting brand new. It'll be like landing on a whole new planet and I won't have a clue where to begin.”

  “That's not true,” she said, smiling at his description.

  “Yes, it is!” he persisted, stepping closer. “That smile says that I'm right and you know it!”

  “Don't be ridiculous, Sway. We're friends. Your leaving for a week won't change that.”

  “Yeah, that's where I think you're wrong.” He was now close enough that she could see that normal twinkle in his cloudy blue eyes was more of a determined glint. “With anyone else, that argument would work. But you're not anyone. You're different. I'll do anything. I'll put Clive in the swankiest kennel around.”

  “It's not just the dog,” she admitted.

  He nodded seriously. “The people.”

  “I'm sure they're great people,” she said quickly. “I'm just not good at the people thing. A huge potential exists that I might ruin everything.”

  Sway gave her a patient smile. Another one. He seemed to always be looking at her like that. Was she really so high-strung that the rock star was constantly exercising his patience with her?

  “You can have your own space. Bring your laptop and headphones. I will guarantee you personal time alone and buy you so much coffee, you'll be able to feel your pulse in your teeth.”

  “They'll think I don't like them.”

  “No, Ryan,” he said firmly. “You don't understand yet because you don't know them, but they're going to like you for who you are. That's just what they do.”

  Ryan's eyebrows rose. “You're being pushy.”

  A muscle jumped in his jaw. “I'm just taking away all your excuses.”

  She could see that clearly. It made it much more difficult to argue. That's when Sway made it impossible for her to hold her ground. He looked at her with such sweet adoration and very obvious apprehension.

  “Please,” he said. “Please come with me. One adventure.”

  Ryan was annoyed that his ploy was working. But she wasn't upset with him. She was upset with herself.

  She'd written enough romance novels to know exactly what was happening.

  As soon as you let the boy get under your skin, that's when the real trouble begins.

  ***

  “So he's over there helping her pack?” Harrison asked with his back against the side of one of the Expeditions.

  Lucy glanced around, not sure who he was talking to. Finding no one else in their general vicinity, she shrugged slowly and deeply. “Yes?”

  “This seems fast. Even for Sway,” Harrison speculated aloud.

  Lucy rolled her lips between her teeth and looked upwards. The walnut tree wasn't fully leaved and the sun shone through easily. It was beautiful. But it gave her no words to say to Harrison.

  She rested her back alongside his much taller frame and crossed her arms over her chest, mirroring his pose. He turned his aviators on her.

  “Doesn't it seem fast?”

  Lucy nodded in agreement. “It seems a little fast.”

  “We spent months planning this surprise. I haven't prepared for another person. What if she feels left out because of the last minute changes?”

  “I think,” Lucy said slowly, putting as much warmth and trust into her voice as she could. “I think everything is going to be fine.”

  “What if she doesn't like us?” Harrison asked the real question.

  Lucy smiled and closed her eyes. “Harry, if she likes Sway, she's gonna like the rest of us no problem.” She straightened her back away from the Expedition and tilted her head as she looked at the guitarist. “When was the last time you ate? You seem a little hungry.”

  Harrison shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. “Breakfast was a while ago.”

  Lucy grinned and leaned towards him conspiratorially. “I happen to know that your fiancée packed a special cooler of emergency sandwiches, just for you.”

  Harrison's smile was fast and bright. “She's the best.”

  Lucy agreed. Zelda was pretty perfect. Especially for Harrison. All of the women had found their place among this world of rock stars and intensity with only a little bit of issue. For the most part, they all fit. Making a new family from the bits and pieces that had been scattered along the highway of their lives. Some came with more baggage than others, but no one was loved any less.

  Still, she understood Harrison’s apprehension.

  Sway didn't have the best reputation when it came to women. And from what Lucy had overheard earlier that morning in the kitchen, this girl he was bringing along was just a friend.

  It's not that it wasn't possible for Sway to have female friends. He had Tawny, for example. And of course Clarke, Lenny, Zelda, and Lucy.

  It just seemed really... weird. He was adamant that Ryan join them. He left no possibility open that she not come along.

  It was his conviction and intensity that was puzzling.

  Light reflected off of an open screen door and Sway came jogging down the neighbor's steps. He wore an expression that was equal parts focused and excited.

  Again with the weird.

  “Hey,” Sway said more to Harrison than to Lucy. “She'll be ready in thirty minutes. We just have to wait for her friends to come and get her dog.”

  “Oh!” Lucy exc
laimed, remembering seeing the large shaggy animal earlier that day. Both men eyed her with matching frowns. “Sorry,” she said feeling her ears heat up. “I like dogs.”

  Sway faced Harrison again. “She's going to need her own room wherever we stay. I'll pay for all of it, so don't worry. And she's going to need to be able to work on the road.”

  “Work?” Zelda asked, joining their conversation.

  Sway's eyes lit up as they swung to the curly haired photographer. “It's her, Zeldy. It's Sullivan Summers.”

  Zelda's green eyes narrowed as her forehead creased in confusion. “You said her name was Ryan.”

  Sway was grinning like an idiot. “It's a pen name.”

  The foursome was quiet. Lucy had no idea what was happening, Harrison seemed to also be oblivious.

  Zelda's eyes got wide and they flicked over Sway's shoulder to Ryan's house. “Oh my,” she whispered. She turned her intensity to Sway. “You never should have told me. I don't know if I can control the fangirl.”

  Sway barked a laugh and then hugged the smaller girl.

  “Hey, hey, hey,” Harrison said, pulling the two apart. “No touching.”

  Sway's joy was impossible to hide. He let go of Zelda and pushed his hair back with both hands. “She's exactly as you said, Zeldy. She likes her quiet life and she's brilliant. I can't wait for you to meet her.”

  “Oh,” Lucy said, putting things together in her head and attracting the focus of the small group. She swallowed and then explained. “Our life isn't... quiet.”

  Sway shook his head. “It's gonna be okay.”

  “I think it's time we tell you what we have in mind,” Harrison said, suddenly the calm one. That actually happened more often now. Sway and Zelda tended to feed off of each other's intensity, encouraging the other to get more ridiculous in different circumstances, leaving Harrison to be the responsible one. It was a strange development at first, but Harrison embraced his new role with fervor. While the fangirl in Zelda recognized and celebrated the fangirl in Sway.

  “It's taken months of setting up, but I finally got it done.” Harrison clapped a hand on Sway's shoulder. “I've booked us under the name General Nuisance at all of the clubs and bars that we played at for our first ever road tour.”