Page 39 of Any Kind of Life
Juliet stood in the middle of the main floor at the venue, every emotion washing through her as Paige effortlessly stroked the keys beneath her fingers. She hadn’t known what to expect when it came to a soundcheck, but God, Paige sounded just as beautiful without the lights and the crowd. Actually, Juliet would go so far as to say that Paige sounded better without the bells and whistles.
But wasn’t this the version of Paige she had fallen in love with? The rawness of her voice, the intimacy of their gaze when their eyes met. Juliet would always prefer it when Paige was singing only to her. For her. There was something quite special about these moments. It had been a long time since Juliet had felt that swell of emotion in her chest, but this afternoon, it was absolutely present. It was a feeling she had longed for since Paige left the second time around. Her piano sat silent at home, and that wasn’t something Juliet was used to anymore.
As she brushed a tear from her jaw, she felt a presence beside her.
“Isn’t she amazing?”
Soraya didn’t need to question Juliet on that. It was a silly thing to say. “She is. I’ve said it for a long time now. There was a time when she didn’t believe it.”
“Looks like she took your advice since she’s up there doing what she loves.”
As Juliet looked to Soraya, she tried to size her up inconspicuously.
“Maybe you could convince her to do the world tour once I’ve finalised details.” Soraya cocked her head towards the sound equipment cases, perching herself on one and offering Juliet the other. “I’m sure she will listen to you rather than me.”
“You’ve asked her about continuing?” Juliet knew Soraya had, but she wanted to know Paige’s response before she carried on with this conversation.
“I’ve brought it up a few times now.”
“And Paige doesn’t see a future in touring?” Juliet asked, trying to keep the conversation as light as possible. When Soraya nodded, Juliet simply shrugged. “Then I’m not going to talk her into anything she doesn’t want.”
Soraya managed a slight laugh. “What you’re saying is…you don’t want her to continue. And I get that—she’s your partner. But don’t you want her to be happy? Doing what she loves?”
“I have no issues at all with Paige touring if that’s what she wants to do. But I’m not going to push her into something that doesn’t mean as much to her as we believe it does. I see the look in her eyes when she’s up there with the piano; I also see the same look back at our bar when she’s serenading our regulars. Whatever Paige is happy with, I’m happy with.”
“You can’t honestly say that she’ll be happy performing to a small group of people after getting a taste of this…”
Juliet looked to Paige again, her heart so full it could burst. “Paige will make the right decision for herself. That’s all I have to say on the matter.”
Soraya sighed as Paige’s song came to an end. “Well, I just hope neither of you come to regret any of this.”
As Soraya got to her feet and turned to Paige, Juliet followed. “Excuse me?”
“All of this. If Paige realises what she’s losing by choosing you over her career, then I don’t hold out much hope for your future together.”
Juliet desperately tried to bite her tongue, but it was a struggle. Soraya had no idea what either of them wanted, and she never would. Who the fuck was this woman to make a comment on their relationship? “You may be used to getting your own way when you throw a diva strop, but you can back the fuck off if you think you have any right to an opinion on my relationship with Paige.” Juliet stepped closer, her chin jutted. “You’re way out of line.”
“I’ve seen it time and time again. I’ve had several support acts in relationships…only to see them end when their partner can’t commit to that kind of life. Sad but true.”
“Maybe if you stopped meddling in people’s lives, they wouldn’t have found themselves in that position.” Juliet scoffed as she caught Paige out of the corner of her eye. She was leaving the stage. “Paige is free to do whatever she wants with her life. Neither you nor I have any right to decide that for her.”
Soraya held up her hands and took a step back. “Okay. Okay. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Soraya turned and walked away, not bothering to acknowledge Paige as she approached.
“How was that, babe?” Paige leant in and kissed below Juliet’s ear. “I know it’s probably boring for you to be standing around, but was it at least okay?”
Juliet pushed Soraya from her mind and gave her full attention to Paige. “You were amazing. As always. It’s nice to have these moments with you after so long without.”
Paige took Juliet by the hand and cocked her head towards the exit. “Come on. Let’s get backstage where I can be alone with you.”
Now that was something Juliet would enjoy.
Alone time with Paige.
Chapter 14
Paige sat back in her seat, finally relaxing after the concert as she watched Juliet speaking with a couple of Soraya’s band. She hadn’t been sure what the atmosphere would be like given the fact Juliet and Soraya didn’t appear to see eye to eye, but she had nothing to worry about here. Juliet wasn’t one for childish games, and Paige suspected that Soraya had learnt her lesson when it came to being standoffish around Juliet.
She took in Juliet’s form as Soraya sat down next to Paige, her gaze sweeping repeatedly up and down that body Paige had been missing lately. Nights with Juliet were just…perfection. Even when they were working at the bar, life still felt incredibly good. Positive and bright. But nights at home? Oh, they were everything to Paige. Making dinner together, drinking hot chocolate on the couch with the TV playing, Juliet watching Paige as she sat at her piano. It didn’t matter what they were doing, so long as Paige was only doing it with Juliet.