could feel Drew cringe at the nickname. This was becoming more fun with each passing second.
“Ballet?” Jared breathed. A dreamy smile lighted his lips and a dazed look clouded his eyes.
“We just lost him,” I teased.
“What do you mean?” Drew’s forehead wrinkled in confusion.
“Jared loves the ballet.”
“Really?” Drew snarled.
“Absolutely,” Jared countered, horrified by the expression on Drew’s face. “How could you not love it? Ballet is graceful and refined.”
“It’s bloody boring, that’s what it is,” Drew protested.
“Boys! boys!” I exclaimed, raising my hands between them.
“What, sweetheart?” Drew asked. “We’re just having a healthy debate here.”
“Exactly,” Jared agreed.
I laughed at the expression on both men’s faces. “Whatever you say, fellas.”
Dropping my hands, I returned to my salad. Drew and Jared relaxed in their seats, each working on the remainder of their food. The sounds of other patrons’ conversations haloed around our now quiet table. The lunch rush was in full swing.
Breaking the silence, Drew pushed his empty plate toward the middle of the table. “Mickie tells me you’re a music therapist?” he inquired of Jared.
“That’s right,” Jared replied.
“She told me a little about it last night. It sounds very interesting. How does it work?”
Jared proceeded to explain to Drew about music therapy as we continued to enjoy our meals. I was very aware of Drew’s presence next to me. To say I wasn’t bothered by it would have been a lie.
I couldn’t begin to tell you what Jared was saying, since I was entirely focused on Drew. All thoughts of Nate had disappeared; replaced by the feeling of warmth radiating from the man dressed in an expensive suit, sitting next to me. I tugged gently at the collar of my shirt, hoping Jared didn’t see how Drew’s closeness was affecting me.
“Very fascinating. It’s been said that music tames the savage beast. It sounds to me, that you have also found away to use music to tame the mind as well,” Drew stated.
“That’s my thoughts exactly. Music therapy is a great tool for these children. We’ve seen vast improvement in how they respond to social interaction because of it.”
I smiled at Jared’s enthusiasm. His nephew suffered with a severe form of autism. Having to watch his sister struggle with raising a special needs child caused Jared to really reach out to her. Because of his nephew, he gave up a promising career in the music industry. That was why he was unwilling to sell his music. He threw himself into his work, much like I did, but it was his passion for music that drove him further.
Jared took the last bite of his sandwich and stretched. “If you two would excuse me for a moment, I need to visit the little boy’s room.” He stood up from the table, patted my shoulder and smiled, before heading to the men’s room.
The silence between Drew and me was overwhelming. Amy arrived back at the table with the bill. Before I could reach for it, Drew had a credit card in his hand, and handed it to Amy.
“Since I crashed the party today, lunch is on me,” he said.
“Thanks, and just so you know, I’m not mad at Liv. I’m used to her blabbing everything to the world. It would take a miracle for her to keep a secret.”
Drew chuckled softly. “She does have a habit of telling everything, doesn’t she?”
“More than you realize,” I said, thinking of my conversation with her and Morgan.
“Are you okay though?” Softness filtered through his tone, his eyes peering at me to match. Once again, I felt comfortable talking to him. His eyes told me he understood where others might not.
“Not really. I keep thinking I made the wrong choice.”
“If you did, you’ll find out quickly. Life has a funny way of putting us on course to correct any mistakes we might’ve
“Ballet?” Jared breathed. A dreamy smile lighted his lips and a dazed look clouded his eyes.
“We just lost him,” I teased.
“What do you mean?” Drew’s forehead wrinkled in confusion.
“Jared loves the ballet.”
“Really?” Drew snarled.
“Absolutely,” Jared countered, horrified by the expression on Drew’s face. “How could you not love it? Ballet is graceful and refined.”
“It’s bloody boring, that’s what it is,” Drew protested.
“Boys! boys!” I exclaimed, raising my hands between them.
“What, sweetheart?” Drew asked. “We’re just having a healthy debate here.”
“Exactly,” Jared agreed.
I laughed at the expression on both men’s faces. “Whatever you say, fellas.”
Dropping my hands, I returned to my salad. Drew and Jared relaxed in their seats, each working on the remainder of their food. The sounds of other patrons’ conversations haloed around our now quiet table. The lunch rush was in full swing.
Breaking the silence, Drew pushed his empty plate toward the middle of the table. “Mickie tells me you’re a music therapist?” he inquired of Jared.
“That’s right,” Jared replied.
“She told me a little about it last night. It sounds very interesting. How does it work?”
Jared proceeded to explain to Drew about music therapy as we continued to enjoy our meals. I was very aware of Drew’s presence next to me. To say I wasn’t bothered by it would have been a lie.
I couldn’t begin to tell you what Jared was saying, since I was entirely focused on Drew. All thoughts of Nate had disappeared; replaced by the feeling of warmth radiating from the man dressed in an expensive suit, sitting next to me. I tugged gently at the collar of my shirt, hoping Jared didn’t see how Drew’s closeness was affecting me.
“Very fascinating. It’s been said that music tames the savage beast. It sounds to me, that you have also found away to use music to tame the mind as well,” Drew stated.
“That’s my thoughts exactly. Music therapy is a great tool for these children. We’ve seen vast improvement in how they respond to social interaction because of it.”
I smiled at Jared’s enthusiasm. His nephew suffered with a severe form of autism. Having to watch his sister struggle with raising a special needs child caused Jared to really reach out to her. Because of his nephew, he gave up a promising career in the music industry. That was why he was unwilling to sell his music. He threw himself into his work, much like I did, but it was his passion for music that drove him further.
Jared took the last bite of his sandwich and stretched. “If you two would excuse me for a moment, I need to visit the little boy’s room.” He stood up from the table, patted my shoulder and smiled, before heading to the men’s room.
The silence between Drew and me was overwhelming. Amy arrived back at the table with the bill. Before I could reach for it, Drew had a credit card in his hand, and handed it to Amy.
“Since I crashed the party today, lunch is on me,” he said.
“Thanks, and just so you know, I’m not mad at Liv. I’m used to her blabbing everything to the world. It would take a miracle for her to keep a secret.”
Drew chuckled softly. “She does have a habit of telling everything, doesn’t she?”
“More than you realize,” I said, thinking of my conversation with her and Morgan.
“Are you okay though?” Softness filtered through his tone, his eyes peering at me to match. Once again, I felt comfortable talking to him. His eyes told me he understood where others might not.
“Not really. I keep thinking I made the wrong choice.”
“If you did, you’ll find out quickly. Life has a funny way of putting us on course to correct any mistakes we might’ve
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