“We’re in the South, y’all,” I said. “Wouldn’t be right if we came here and didn’t play any songs that fit right in.” Which meant, it was time to crank shit up.

My fingers fell over the strings, and I took the lead with Nicky playing rhythm. Luiz and Chris joined in too. We raised the tempo gradually, and my brother and I exchanged a laugh when he accidentally flicked away his pick. I improvised a short, bluesy lick to delay his cue, and then I dove right into the first verse once Nicky was back on track.

It was the perfect song to work up a sweat to.

“Give them something to move to, Sylvia,” I instructed into the mic, retrieving my bottleneck slide from my pocket. Sliding the metal tube along the strings altered the pitch and gave us a more raw sound. “We’re not here to stand still, are we?”

Sylvia and her talented piano fingers crushed the notes and brought us back to the classic rock ’n’ roll era of Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis, and it was fucking impossible not to get swept away by it.

I opened the door but didn’t take a single step past the doorway. Madonn’, I didn’t know how to react. I didn’t know what I’d expected either. It suddenly made sense why Camden had his own room, however. King didn’t strike me as the type who wanted his walls filled with action figures, video games, and toys. The room was absolutely packed. Floor-to-ceiling shelves—aside from the short ends of the room. One side reserved for a big bed, the other for a gaming nook. At the foot of his bed, he had a dresser with a big flat-screen on it.

The boy himself sat in the middle of his bed, a thick duvet with a Spider-Man design pooling around his waist. Stuffed animals, from traditional teddy bears to Ewoks, scattered all over.

“Hi again.” Camden wore another shy grin for me, much like he’d done earlier today. “I took a super-long nap, and now I’m not tired at all.”

I had to say something. I had to treat him in a special way.

But God, I could just listen to that boyish voice all night.

“I coulda used a nap too, but I helped your Daddy prepare for the barbecue.”

Camden’s lovely blue eyes lit up. “He makes the best barbecue in the whole galaxy.” He reached past the duvet pile he was buried in and patted a spot on his mattress. “Come sit with me right here, please? We can watch Winter Soldier together. It’s Captain America.”

I closed the door behind me, utterly transfixed, and made my way over to his bed. His innocence was beautiful. So fucking beautiful.