The song had ended and the husky voice of the sexy songstress filled the room. "And since tonight is a special night, we have a special guest star joining us. We've not played together in oh... forever, but some sparks just never die." Her expression left little to the imagination. Wolf-whistles came from a few guys in the audience. "Okay, I'm going to shut my mouth now... or at least this side of my mouth after I welcome a good friend onto stage. Please give it up for the ultra-sexy Aidan O'Shea..."

The crowd broke out into raucous applause; clearly, most of the regulars knew him. Alicia had no idea why, but a sharp pang of jealousy stabbed at her heart as he walked onto stage, a guitar slung over his shoulder, and hugged the lead singer, her hands resting intimately on his arse.

The band started up immediately, Lilah rocking slowly to the beat, her eyes never leaving Aidan, while he strummed away at his guitar, his focus on his very talented fingers. Oh how good those fingers would feel strumming my... Stop! Damn Jacques for putting those wicked thoughts into her head.

♪The promise in his eyes was my anchor

His lips against mine fed my soul

Our desire like firelight against a dark sky

I was holding my breath

Our bodies moving as one

And when I opened up my eyes

He was gone

He was gone♫

And as Lilah's voice trailed off, Aiden picked up seamlessly, leaving no doubt that they'd been up on that stage with each other before, the way they looked at one another nothing short of intimate.

♪I was captured by her unflawed beauty

Skin like silken heaven to my touch

Hunger raging as we feasted on each other

I was holding my breath

When the lights came back on

Found I was feasting on lies

Blinded by love

Blinded by love

I was the air that you breathe

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...♫

There was a brief dramatic drum intersession in which Aidan rocked to the music, his eyes closed, and fingers strumming with expert ease. Alicia tried desperately to make sense of the rising jealousy she was feeling at the sight of Aidan singing to the stunner up on stage. You have no right to feel anything, fool!

♪ Does he hum to drown out the sound of my broken heart?

Are memories of me fading slowly into nothingness?

I cannot erase what my soul will not forget

His lips so soft on mine

How was I to know

He was kissing me goodbye

The end felt like death

The end felt like death♫

Lilah's hand gripped at her chest, the yearning in both her voice and her expression feeling like something more than just a show put on for an audience. Nothing about the way she acted toward him felt fake - it was the way lovers acted with each other.

♪I was a lone traveller with a suitcase full of dreams

Perfectly black night found her waiting at a crossroad

Searching for my nirvana, I found a demon instead

Trapping me in a shallow pit

In a war nobody could win

My air was running out

She was salt in my wound

She was salt in my wound

I was the air that you breathe

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...♫

The two singers inched closer to one another as Aiden repeated the last line, then sang the last part of the song together, their voices complementing each other perfectly, seeming to Alicia as if they'd been made for each other. Alicia could no longer watch as they stood together after the song ended, lips barely a breath apart.

♪I was the air that you breathe

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...

How do you breathe now...

Moving into separate tomorrows

Our journey was at an end

We were no longer wasting time

Only ourselves...

Only ourselves...

Only ourselves...♫

♥ ♥ ♥

Aidan's eyes drifted towards the table Alicia had been sitting at, but her seat was empty. Where could she have gone? Had she left? Fuck! How could he have been so stupid?

Lilah was looking at him expectantly when he eventually snapped out of his buzz... Shit! He had missed his cue and the lead guitarist had tossed in an impromptu guitar solo; luckily, the crowd had not noticed. He shrugged and mouthed 'sorry' to a puzzled Lilah. They launched into the final rendition of the chorus and the song ended on a high note. The crowd roared their appreciation. Lilah grabbed his hand and lifted it seconds before they bowed together. That was when he noticed it... the smell of apple blossoms was back.

♥ ♥ ♥

Alicia kept her eyes on the ground as she made her way back into the bar. The song had ended, but he was still up there; she could hear it in the way the audience was chanting for an encore. She should have followed her gut and hailed a taxi while she was outside to clear her head. 

Why could she not vanquish the thoughts that were running through her head? Thoughts of her in his arms, of his lips paying homage to every inch of her body, of their bodies intertwined in the throes of passion. Throes of passion, Ali? Seriously? What did she know about the throes of passion? She had never lost herself to her desires before, not to any man. The only sex she had ever had was with her high school sweetheart, Jensen. He had been a jock and she had been chairperson of the chess club; they were a match made in comedic heaven. He had a reputation for being a douche, but that had never bothered Alicia since he was always the perfect gentleman with her; that was, until the night she surrendered her innocence to him. He had taken what he needed from her with reckless abandon, dropped her off at home and then proceeded to treat her as if they had never met before. She had spent the entire final term of her senior year trying to ignore the sniggering every time she passed any of his friends. The entire experience had soured her to relationships, the mere thought of sex making her shudder every time she remembered the burning pain of that night, both physically and emotionally. Until now.

"Horse walks into a bar and sits down. The barman looks at him and guess what he asks?" Jacques asked as she sat down.

"I don't know. What does he ask?" Alicia smiled, but her heart felt inexplicably heavy.

"Why the long face?" His eyes softened, his concern for her evident. "He's a guy, Ali... We're all douche-bags. Trust me." He squeezed her hand gently.

Another song started; they were singing about fairytales and frogs and damsels that did not need saving. Their voices were a perfect blend of sultry allure; she was sure they could be singing about folding laundry or taking out the trash and it would still sound sexy. The song ended with a flourish, Aidan on his knees with Lilah leaning in close enough for their lips to touch briefly. Alicia looked away, pretending to be occupied with the bowl of nuts on their table.