Kai is staring at me and grinning proud as I watch him do his thing.
“Told you he has a thing for you,” Raven says, nudging my shoulder with hers.
“Do you want me with Kai, so he won’t mind your being with Jake?”
“I want Kai to be happy, and I want him to have a girlfriend, so he won’t mind the other guys dating. Kai thinks it will hurt their image if fans see them with girlfriends.”
Well that explains a lot. Maybe Kai is afraid I will hurt his career while he is trying to get it off the ground. He doesn’t need to worry about that though. I have dreams of my own.
“Are you going on tour with them this summer?”
“I haven’t decided yet. My parents will probably kill me, but I really want to go. The experience of traveling alone will be worth putting college off for a semester or two. What about you? What are your plans?”
“I don’t know. I want to go to New York maybe. I just want to go anywhere but here,” I tell her honestly.
“You should come with us. Kai could have you sing backup or you guys could do duets or something.” Raven is looking at me smirking as if a light bulb is flashing over her head.
“Not sure that is the best idea. Raven, that could lead to a world of trouble.” So much could go wrong in that situation.
“Trust me, Katie. I have a vision and it includes you by Kai’s side.”
“What makes you so sure Kai would even want that?”
“Because I know Kai, and I know what he wants before he does.” She jumps up from the couch and struts over to the guys smiling. “Kai, I want you to try something. I want you to sing Wicked Game with Katie.”
“Sure,” he says with a shrug as if it is nothing. It makes me nervous. We have goofed around in the car, but this song is so intimate.
The rest of the band takes it as their cue to take a break and grab a drink.
“Katie, get up here,” Raven demands.
Kai grabs me a stool. I take the seat next to him and he gets ready with his guitar.
“I’ll play, you sing and try not to pay attention to me cutting in. We may have to go through it a few times to get comfortable singing together. This song isn’t meant to be a duet, but I think it could be great.”
I nod and smile weakly at him, this could go two ways…it could be epic, or it could be a disaster.
Kai starts strumming, playing the melody softly with an underground vibe. I wait for my cue and sing the first line. Raven shoots me a thumb up and the guys all stop talking to listen to us.
Raven has us try another song, Talking in your Sleep, by The Civil Wars.
Once we are finished, Kai leans over and kisses my cheek.
Raven is bouncing. “Told you it would be great.”
“Damn man, you said she could sing, but she can sing,” Jakes says, wrapping his arm around my shoulder, giving me a gentle squeeze. “You two sound like you’ve been singing together for years.”
Everyone starts talking at once, about how they—Cooper’s Religion—need to work me into a few of their songs as a special guest or something. I tell them I will think about it. I don’t want Kai to think I am trying to weasel my way into his group just to be close to him. I will only do it if I am a right fit and the band agrees as a whole that they want me.
Nothing is decided tonight, and Jake kicks us all out a few minutes later using having to work early as an excuse. I suspect he wants to spend time with Raven.
Chapter 14
In the car, I ask Kai if he is okay with Raven wanting to add me to the mix. He says he loves the idea, but I can sense some hesitancy in his tone.
“You sure? You can totally say no, and it won’t hurt my feelings, Kai. I know this band is your dream, and I don’t want to get in the way of that ever.”
“Kat, you scare me. You are dangerous for me, but I can’t stay away. You have the ability to steal my heart and break it.”