Less Than Nothing (36 page)

And I’d have been wrong.

Melody, my dad, and I spend the next day and a half doing all the touristy stuff I didn’t do with him on our last outing, including the zoo, a carriage ride through Central Park, a ferry to the Statue of Liberty, and lunch on the banks of the Hudson. By the time Saturday night’s rolled around, I’m exhausted playing host, and ready for the flight to San Francisco.

My dad called Ralph and learned that my mom’s been hospitalized again, and this time it looks really bad, so we agreed to drive up on Sunday and see her – hopefully not for the last time. Sabrina arranged for the flight, business class no less, and offered me a short-term contract to do appearances for the show, this time at a thousand dollars a pop. Even two a week is crazy money, and my head’s still trying to grasp that I don’t have to eat hot dogs anymore unless I want to.

It started raining a few hours earlier, one of the late summer storms that hit the East Coast before it begins getting cold, which I’ll get to experience – I’m doing a conference call with the record company on Monday to discuss timing on my first recording, which they want to get out before everyone forgets who I am. I feel more than ready, although I’ve never been in a studio.

“Okay. I’ll see you in a week or so,” I call to Jeremy as I slip the straps of my backpack on. He comes out of his room, and he’s got some kind of cream mask on his face.

“For the pores, dahling,” he says and gives me air kisses. “I’ll miss you tellibly, girl. Try to have fun, will you? All work…”

“Yeah. Fun. Got it.” Thunder booms in the night sky. “I’ve never flown before. You think it’ll be rough?”

“Don’t worry. In business they drown you in champagne. By the time you’re in the air, you won’t feel a thing.”

A horn honks from out front, and I smile. “Be good.”

“Or really bad. It’s way more fun.”

I go downstairs and push the door open. The rain’s slowed to a drizzle and it’s warm. The cab’s in front of the wrong building, ensuring I’ll get nice and drenched. I take a deep breath and plunge out into the rain. As I near the cab, a familiar voice calls from behind me.

“Sage.”

I slow and turn. It’s Derek, soaked, wet hair hanging in his face. He’s approaching from where he must have been waiting for me. I go to the taxi and tell the driver I’ll be a minute, and then return to where Derek’s waiting, the rain streaking down in the dim light. He doesn’t seem to care.

“I heard you’re leaving,” he says. I rush to him and hug him. He wraps his arms around me, and I lift my head. His lips crush down on mine, and it’s magic, my entire body thrumming as we kiss. I’m crying out of happiness, the salt of my tears blending with the rain. Heat flares in me as I pull his head down so I can get more of him, greedy for his sweet lips, his taste, his essence. He raises his hands to my face and runs his fingers through my sopping hair, and it feels incredible. I moan deep in my throat and shift my head, and then the cab honks, reminding me that I’m not floating to heaven in Derek’s arms tonight. He pulls away and then kisses me again, and I’m laughing and crying and about to explode with joy as the rain cascades down on us both, locked together as one, our connection powerful enough to power the city.

Another honk.

This time it’s me who pulls away.

“I have to go.”

He’s staring at me as though hypnotized. “I know.”

“How?”

“A little bird.”

“I miss you so much, Derek.”

“I know. I do too. I wish you weren’t leaving.”

“I’ll be back in a week,” I say, and then reality hits. That’s fine for me, but Derek didn’t win. He’ll be living on the streets, playing for his dinner, same as always. “I wish you’d won instead of me. I don’t care about any of it. I…I just want you.”

“Careful what you wish for,” he says. I don’t understand. He smiles his crooked grin, and my heart flutter starts. “I’m staying in New York. I got offered a record deal, too. Not as big as yours, I’m sure, but it’s a deal. Apparently even a runner-up can sell some tunes.”

“That’s awesome, Derek! Oh, my God! I’m so happy for you. I felt so crummy that it had to be either you or me.”

“Well, no half-million bucks, but hey, it would have ruined me anyway, right?”

He leans into me, and we begin kissing again, and the driver honks, this time a long blare.

“Crap. I have to run. I’m picking up my dad and Melody, and then we’re off to the airport.” I look at him, soaking wet, seemingly impervious to the elements and more beautiful than anyone has a right to be, and nod. “Will you wait for me?”

His radiant smile seems to light up the night.

“I’ll be counting the minutes.”

<<<<>>>>

More Than Anything
continues Sage and Derek’s saga from
Less Than Nothing
. Can true love overcome adversity and a mountain of obstacles keeping them apart?

Will the temptations of their new found success be too much for them?

Can hope and sincerity withstand the high-pressure reality of the music industry?

Sometimes it’s hard to choose the right path, even if you want a future with your soul mate more than anything.

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R. E. Blake is the pseudonym of a USA Today bestselling author of over 30 novels.

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