She’s waiting for me to accept on the spot. And she’s right that this should be a no-brainer. It’s the break I’ve been waiting for. The break every singer waits for. Still, old habits die hard, and for a moment I hear myself turning her down. I’m on the verge of telling her that while I appreciate the opportunity, I don’t know if I’m ready. That I’ve suffered this personal thing, how tonight was a struggle just to get through my set, and I don’t want to go on if I’m not completely mentally prepared for it.

But I catch myself. That would be Ella talking. Cassidy knows to leap at the opportunity and not look back.

“Sounds amazing. Thank you so much, Karen.”

She kisses me on both cheeks yet again. This time it ends with a strong hug.

“Thank me by blowing the roof off like you always do,” she says.

It’s slightly past eleven when I arrive home from Lava. Gabriel is still awake, lounging on my sofa.

After I remove my coat, he says, “Jesus. I can’t believe any self-respecting man would let his woman out in public wearing that.”

He wasn’t here when I left, so this is his first time seeing tonight’s outfit. I know that he’s kidding. At least, I think I do.

“It was a tough one tonight,” I say. “Give me a few minutes to morph into Ella. She’s got some good news to share.”

In my bathroom, I transform back. First by washing away Cassidy’s mascara and eyeliner, then taking special effort to rub the lipstick off her mouth, and finally by tying my hair back. From the hook in my bathroom, I grab my flannel PJs, put them on, and return to being me.

When I reenter the bedroom, Gabriel is sitting in bed shirtless, the rest of him under the covers.

“That’s the woman I love,” he says.

He’s begun saying it like that. Not quite an “I love you, Ella,” but always as a slightly indirect aside. I’ll say something funny and he’ll say, “That’s why I love you.” It’s as if he’s trying it on for size, getting comfortable with the idea of love before committing to it. For my part, I’m an all-or-nothing person when it comes to such declarations. I won’t say anything of the sort until I’m absolutely certain that I’m in love with him. I expect that to be soon, however. Very soon, in fact.

“Karen offered me the opening slot on Saturday night. There may be some record people there too.”

“Ella . . . that’s truly amazing. I’m so proud of you.”