What He Didn't Say
The interviewer's question crackled over the phone lines as Kevin settled into a chair in a backstage room of the venue they were playing that night. "You recently signed brand-new recording artist Lyta Stevens to open for your summer tour. Tell us about her."
Kevin smiled. "She's an amazing girl, very talented, excited about what she's doing. She has a great future, and we're thrilled to introduce her and to have her on tour with us." He didn't say that the first time he saw her he was entranced, or that when she hugged him his head spun from the warmth of her touch and the sweet, fresh smell of her perfume.
The interviewer continued, "Now that you've played a few dates with her, how would you describe what it's like touring with her?"
"Oh, it's awesome. She's a great performer, and just great as a person. We're all so close, we have a great time together." He didn't say that working so closely all the time was sweet, sweet torture, that seeing her smile every morning was the reason he wanted to get out of bed. Seeing her perform was as exciting for him as it was for the fans and her songs were on the most-played list on his iPod, though he would never admit it.
"There have been rumors going around that either you or your brother Joe are dating her. What do you say to those rumors?"
Kevin laughed as a cover for the moment he needed to compose himself. "You know, she's a great friend, but really nothing more than that. The rumors that go around are pretty crazy." He didn't say that he would give anything--quite possibly his whole career--for there to be more between them, and that he could never take it if his brother dated her. Seeing him flirt with her like he did with every girl was almost intolerable.
"Alright, moving away from Lyta--all your fans want to know, what's this nose tap that you do in front of the cameras all about? Does it exist, does it mean something?"
He laughed again, knowing this was going to come up at some point. "Yeah, it exists. It's just a signal to someone special to me, to show I'm thinking of them. I don't know that they always see it, so it's more for myself. It's not for a girlfriend, don't worry." He didn't say that the man hadn't moved off the subject of Lyta at all. Every nose tap was for her--but she had no idea. Still, it was his public, private acknowledgment of the way he felt about her. It felt good every time he thought she might see.
After several more questions, Kevin hung up the phone and sighed, happy to have one more thing off his busy schedule. he rose and turned to head for the dressing room he shared with his brothers. His heart stuttered and he stilled instantly. She stood in the doorway looking at him, her fingers running absently over the skirt of her sparkly stage dress. "Good interview?" she asked softly, not quite meeting his eyes.
"Um--yeah. They asked a lot about you." He didn't say that he loved those questions because it gave him an excuse to think about her, but hated them because it got harder to hide his feelings with every word he said on the subject.
She smiled and leaned against the wall. "So the nose tap's for someone special, huh?" She locked eyes with him for a split second that left him weak. "Girl?"
He nodded, swallowing. "A really special girl." He didn't say how special, how beautiful, how perfect she was, how the way she leaned up against that wall with her dark hair flowing over her shoulder was like something from a dream. He didn't say it was her.
"Mm." She dropped her eyes again. "I see you do it all the time."
"You see it? Really?" He knew he sounded too excited. He didn't say he was beyond thrilled that she noticed it.
She blushed, her cheeks going red. "Is--um--is the girl who I think she is?"
He was amazed at his outward calmness. "That depends on who you think it is." As his heart raced, he didn't say that her cheeks flushed light pink and her hands wringing lightly sent tingles of delight down his spine.
She didn't answer him, only stepped forward and curved her hand along the side of his face, thumb grazing his jawline. "Kevin..."
His name from her lips was all it took. Shaking from anxiousness and anticipation, scared to death it wouldn't turn out right, Kevin stepped forward and cupped her face in his hands, meeting her lips with his, the kiss deepening sweetly as she responded.
She sighed, a sound that filled him with warmth, and slid her hands to clasp behind his neck. Moments later, he broke his mouth gently from her and wrapped his arms tight around her, nuzzling his face into her neck.
He didn't say "I love you."
He didn't really need to.
