After their first set, Teddy bounds over to our table, still clutching his drumsticks, while the other guys head into a back room to put their guitars down.
“Hey, Eveny!” he says. “Hey, Liv!” His forehead is glistening with sweat, and he’s grinning. “Anyone want to go do a shot with me at the bar?”
I say, “No thanks,” at the same time Liv says, “Sure, why not? There’s something I want to run by you anyway.” I give her a look, because after all, she’s the one driving home after the show.
“They’re not real strict with IDs in this town, are they?” I ask.
Liv and Teddy both laugh. “The Dolls aren’t the only ones who can get away with breaking the rules,” Liv says. I watch as she follows Teddy, giggling about something he’s said.
I turn my attention back toward the stage just in time to see Drew emerge without his guitar. He heads straight for me.
“You came to my show,” he says, giving me an awkward half hug.
“Yeah, me and Liv both.” I gesture toward the bar.
He glances her way then grins at me. “You look beautiful tonight, Eveny. Really.”
“You looked pretty good up there yourself.” I change the subject before it gets uncomfortable. “I’m really glad we came. The band’s amazing.”
“Thanks!” He launches into a long explanation of how they’re trying to get a record deal with some New Orleans-based music label, and I’m listening until a familiar deep voice somewhere off to my left catches my attention. I do a double take when I see who’s sitting there.
It’s Caleb, all by himself at a table near the back of the room, giving a pretty waitress his order.
I feel my heart leap into my throat. What’s he doing here?
Caleb catches me staring and half raises his glass in greeting, then turns away as if he has no interest interacting with me at all.
As I force myself to refocus on Drew, I feel a river of heat flowing through me, and I hope it’s not showing on my face. Drew’s still talking, and when he leans in and touches my arm to make a point, I pull away and feel instantly guilty when a hurt expression flickers across his face. But what if Caleb thinks I’m with Drew?
Drew makes it worse a second later by giving me a peck on the cheek. “Seriously, Eveny, thanks so much for coming out tonight. It’s really cool of you.”
Then Tallon beckons from the stage, and Drew says sadly, “Looks like I have to go. But see you in a few, okay?”
Liv sits down next to me a moment later holding two drinks. She pushes one toward me. “They’re both Sprite,” she says.
I thank her, and I’m about to open my mouth to ask what she thinks Caleb is doing here when she asks eagerly, “So did Drew say anything about me?”
I look over at Caleb’s table. He’s deep in conversation with the waitress, who’s in short shorts, a tight white T-shirt, and cowboy boots. I shake off a surge of jealousy. “He’s really glad you came,” I tell Liv.
“Awesome,” she says.
The band begins playing, and we turn back to the stage. Drew keeps grinning at us, and Liv is squirming in her seat. Meanwhile, Caleb doesn’t appear to be paying the slightest bit of attention to me. I’m puzzled that he’s here, considering that the Périphérie isn’t exactly the Dolls’ domain.
“So would you think I was totally crazy if I told you I’d offered to help Drew’s band?” Liv asks after a few minutes.
“Help them how?”
“So what if I offered to manage them?” she says. When I shoot her a confused look, she hurries to add, “I know it sounds kind of nuts. But I’m always listening to indie bands and reading Spin and Rolling Stone and all that. I’ve been saving up for this program that’ll basically turn my Mac into a home recording studio—what if I offer to cut the song for them?”
“You know how to do that?”
“I’ll learn,” she says confidently. “Then maybe I can get out of this town and take Drew and his buddies with me. I mean, look at those guys.” She points at the stage. “Girls will go crazy for them. They’re all really cute, right?” Her eyes linger on Drew several beats too long.
“You sure this isn’t just a way to hit on Drew . . . ?”
“No!” she exclaims. Then she shoots me a guilty look. “Maybe. But only a little. If you tell anyone that, though, I’ll have to kill you.”
I laugh and settle back to watch Little Brother’s set. Just before the band finishes, Liv grabs my arm and says, “Wait, is that Caleb Shaw? What’s he doing out here?”