“Here.” She tries to hand me another wad of wipes. “You should probably clean your mouth and chin.”

“What for?” I goad.

Her eyes shut and she shakes her head. “So you don’t smell like my vagina on stage.”

I scrunch my nose as if considering it. “Nah,” I finally say, puckering my lips and taking a long whiff. “Think I’ll leave it…”

“How you doin’ tonight, Nashville?”

The packed house goes wild in response to Rhett’s intro.

“That’s good,” he answers. “Well, we’re doing real good too. Super excited you’ve all come out to celebrate the grand opening of our new stomping grounds.”

He pauses for a series of screams and cat calls before continuing. “As you know, me and the guys have been doing this gig for a while now, out on the road.” He turns to face the band in silent acknowledgment. “Don’t worry, we aren’t planning to sell the tour buses just yet.” He winks. “But we certainly look forward to scaling back. It means everything to us to have your support in this new endeavor.”

“Hell yeah!” Aiden shouts into his mic. “Bottoms up, bitchessss.” He flings his whiskey glass into the air.

My eyes immediately search for Anika in the crowd, expecting to find smoke billowing from her ears after the stink she pulled about me signing off on my statement with that exact phrasing.

Not gonna lie; I kinda wanna have Sammi tit-punch her when I see the megawatt smile on her face.

My irritation, however, is quickly replaced with a burst of adrenaline when Nick takes that as his cue to count us off. There’s something about that four count that instantly flips a switch. It transports us all to another dimension, where we become one unit…a synchronized heartbeat.

I start out in the back near the drums, where Nick and I set the rhythm.

Front and center are Rhett on vocals and guitar, and Aiden just to his right on keys and backup vocals.

I’ve never been very good at keeping a low profile like your stereotypical bassist. In auditions, that’s what set me apart from the rest. I don’t just play music; I live and breathe it. It embodies me heart and soul. And I leave it all on that stage.

The Rhett Taylor Band is known for our high energy shows. If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s that we’ll show up to entertain.

By the time that first chorus hits, I’m rocking it in my signature spot, just to Rhett’s left. We feed off each other, playing to the crowd.

I keep time with my instrument with effortless ease while making eyes at the pretty girls in the audience. One can never underestimate a well-timed wink here and a smirk there. As a unit, we’ve mastered the art of flirting while performing.