Kyle turned to glare at his brother. “How did you know she played guitar?”

“Relax, it’s not what you think,” Jared said, which instantly made me flush. Great, they assumed I was one of Jared’s flings. But to my surprise, Jared didn’t reveal how he knew. “She told me last night at the party.”

Kyle’s eyes narrowed, like he found that hard to believe, but Hector cut him off. “Forget it. We all agreed—no more girls in the band. Not after what happened with Becca.”

“Hector’s right,” Kyle said. “Sorry, Maddie. It’s nothing against you.”

“We don’t have any other option,” Jared said. “Unless you can find someone who can play guitar or bass and knows our songs before tomorrow morning.”

“How do you know she can actually play?” Hector asked. “She probably just said that to get in your pants.”

“Hey—” I started to protest.

“She knows our songs?” Kyle asked and then tilted his head back to the ceiling. “Actually, that doesn’t surprise me. Maddie is some kind of musical genius. She can hear a piece one time and then play it back perfectly.”

“That’s a bit of an exaggeration,” I muttered, but no one was listening to me. Maybe I should leave and let them sort this out on their own. I glanced at my guitar case and wondered how quickly I could pack up and flee to my car.

“Shit, I don’t know.” Hector removed his hat, spilling his dark curls, and then shoved it back on again. “We should forget this audition and wait for the next one.”

“The next show won’t be for another year,” Jared said. “We can’t wait that long. And what if they don’t want us next year? No, we have to do it tomorrow.”

“I need to talk to Maddie alone,” Kyle said.

He led me down the driveway, far enough that the others couldn’t hear us. I swallowed hard as I waited for him to speak, preparing for the worst. He stared at the guitar still around my neck and then sighed and swept back the black hair that was always falling in his eyes.

“Why didn’t you tell me you played guitar?”

“Um…” I stared at the ground. I hated that I’d kept this from him for so long and that he was hurt now because of my omission. But how could I explain that guitar had been my secret all these years? Something that had just been for me. Not my parents. Not my teachers. Not even my friends. I didn’t think Kyle would understand somehow. He wore his entire personality on display and didn’t care what other people thought. It was one of the things I admired most about him.