She glanced out at the western horizon anxiously. “Hurry back,” she said and started removing things from the picnic basket, carefully arranging them on the small round table on the deck.

In the bathroom, Sed turned on his cell phone and it beeped. New message. Three of them. All from Brian.

The first message said, “Sed, you need to stay home today. Eric and Jace are up to something. Call me.”

Eric and Jace?

And the second, “Dare told us you’re on your way to San Francisco with Jessica. I hope you check your messages soon. I have something important to tell you. Call me. Immediately.”

The final message, “Sed, whatever you do, don’t get on that boat!”

Sed’s heart sank to his toes. Too late for that. He was already on the boat. Was Jessica planning to kill him and then dump his body overboard before sailing off into the sunset with his drummer and bassist? And how did Brian know about their plan? Was he in on it or trying to save Sed’s life? Palms sweating, Sed dialed Brian and waited for him to answer.

“Finally. I’ve been waiting for you to call me back all day.”

“What the fuck is going on, Brian?”

“Please tell me you’re not on the boat.”

“I’m on the boat.”

“Shit!” Brian then spoke to someone on his end, “He’s already on the boat.”

“Shit!” Trey said in the background.

Brian spoke into his phone again, “Okay, moving on to plan B.”

Sed scratched his head behind his ear. “Plan B. What was Plan A?”

“You’ve got to do it today, buddy. Like, right now.”

Sed was not following him. Like, at all. “Do what?”

“Propose to Jessica.”

“Yeah, tomorrow during the concert. We already planned the whole thing.”

“You can’t wait. Go do it right now.”

“Now? What’s going on, Brian?”

Brian hesitated and then sighed loudly. “I can’t say.”

“Tell him,” Trey said loud enough for Sed to hear.

“It’s not a fair win if we tell him. It won’t count.”

“I’m not getting the tattoo of Eric’s choice on my ass because you’re being some honorable douche bag,” Trey said. “Give me the damn phone. I’m telling him.”

Sed held the device away from his ear as his two guitarists wrestled over Brian’s phone. Loudly. Apparently, Brian won.

“You have to ask her to marry you before sunset. Okay?” Brian said breathlessly. “Just trust me on this. You know I wouldn’t steer you wrong.”

“I’m not asking her until she hears her song. It’s the only reason I haven’t proposed yet.” Well, that, and he was nervous. Also putting the ring on her finger in her sleep hadn’t worked out so well.

“So sing it to her.”

“Without music? Don’t be stupid, Brian. You and Trey have been rehearsing her song all week.”

“What about the recording you guys made a couple years ago?” Sed heard Trey say in the background.

“Yes! I forgot about the recording. Perfect! Sed, if I play the song for her over the phone, will you ask her? We can still play it for her live at the concert tomorrow.” Brian made a sound of desperation—half whine, half groan. “Please.”

Brian never asked Sed for much and he owed the guy a lot. Sed sighed in annoyance, knowing he couldn’t refuse. “If you send me the song, I guess so.”

Brian released a sigh of relief. “Thank God. I hope I still have it. I’ll check my files and call you back A.S.A.F.P.”

“Fine,” Sed said. “You know, if you crazy bastards would quit making stupid bets…”

“You’ve made your share of stupid bets.”

Sed couldn’t deny it.

“I’ll try to find it,” Brian continued, “but if for some reason I can’t, promise you’ll ask her anyway. Before sunset.”

What was the big deal with sunset? Was she going to turn into an ogre or something?

“I’ll ask her. When I’m ready.”

Trey was hollering, “What did he say? Is he going to save our asses? I mean literally. Brian?” when Sed disconnected.

Sed still didn’t completely understand the bet or what Eric and Jace had to do with anything. Maybe Jessica could explain it. He set his phone on vibrate and stuffed it back in his pocket. Before returning to deck, he used the bathroom facilities and washed up in the little sink. He no longer thought Jessica planned to kill him (well, probably not), but he was a bit leery of her intentions now that he knew she was in on some stupid bet his band mates had devised. No telling what he was in for.

On deck, he took the chair across from her and she smiled sweetly, the sinking sun making her strawberry blonde hair glow a pale gold.

“Canned peaches? They should be easy on your throat.”

His throat really wasn’t bothering him at all, but he nodded, unlikely to ever refuse her coddling. “What happens at sunset?”

She dropped her fork in the big container of peaches. “The sun goes down.”

He shook his head at her. “Smartass,” he murmured with a crooked grin. After she retrieved the fork, he watched her lick peach syrup off her fingers.

“Why did you ask me that?” she asked suspiciously.

“I just talked to Brian on the phone. He seemed to think something significant was going to happen at sunset. Something involving Eric and Jace. You aren’t planning to murder me, are you?”

Her initial stunned expression quickly turned to uneasy laughter. “Murder you? Eh, no, not exactly.”

“Then what exactly are you planning on doing?”

“It’s a surprise. A good one. I promise.” She offered him a peach with her fork. “Just relax, okay? You’re making me nervous.”

He slurped the peach down his throat. “Making you nervous?”

“Look,” she said, pointing at something over his shoulder. “There’s Alcatraz.”

Why was she pointing out one of the most horrible prisons in existence? Maybe she was just trying to distract him. They were sailing away from Alcatraz and closer to the Golden Gate Bridge over her shoulder.

“And there’s the Golden Gate Bridge.”

She glanced behind her and turned a sickly shade of green. “Already?”

The closer they got to the bridge, the greener she looked.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded slightly. Fed him another peach.

Sed’s phone vibrated in his pocket. His heart skipped a beat. He hoped it meant Brian had found the music file. At the same time, nerves were getting the better of him. They should just wait until tomorrow.

The sun sank lower, appearing as a glowing red-orange ball on the horizon.

His phone vibrated again. He took a deep breath and pulled his phone from his pocket. It was Brian.

“I need to take this, sweetheart. Excuse me.” He turned his back on her and answered, “What?”

“I found it. Put Jessica on the phone and I’ll play it for her.”

Sed took a deep breath and handed her the phone. This was it.

She gave him an odd look as she took the phone from his hand.

“Brian has something you need to listen to.”

She glanced at the bridge behind her. It loomed larger and larger with each passing moment. “Can it wait?”

“Please.”

She held the phone up to her ear. “Brian?”

He said something to her, Sed could only guess what. Her expression changed from curiosity to wonder, and then her eyes filled with unexpected tears.

“Oh no, don’t do that,” Sed said.

“You wrote this song?” She covered her lips with trembling fingers. “For me?” she asked, her voice cracking.

“Yes, I wanted you to hear it before—”

“It’s beautiful.”

The time was right. Certainty replaced his nervousness in an instant. He removed her ring from his pocket and went down on one knee before her. “Jessica,” he said, his heart full to bursting, “will you mar—”

Her eyes widened. “No. No, don’t do that. Not now. You’ll ruin everything.” She dropped his phone, stood, and pulled him to his feet by his shirt.

Her verbal slash to his heart stole his breath.

No? She’d said no. How could she say no?

Jessica turned and waved vigorously at the bridge overhead with both arms. She took Sed’s hands in hers. He felt it. He saw it. Her love. It was there in her eyes. So clear he could reach out and touch it. Why had she refused him?

Why?

The ring. It was too small. She deserved better. What had she said when she’d thrown it at him two years ago? Hock that cheap piece of shit. But even if that was her reasoning, he could not accept it. Would not. She loved him. He knew she did. So why? Why had she said no? What could he have done differently? He couldn’t let her go again. He just couldn’t. She had to—

“Sed, sweetheart. Look up at the bridge.”

Sed obeyed, too stunned to argue. He could barely hear the roar of a motorcycle on the bridge far above and then an enormous white banner unfurled over the edge of San Francisco’s most famous landmark. Will was written on the banner in huge red letters. A few seconds later a second banner opened. you. And then a third. marry. Someone (Jace?) was riding a motorcycle across the pedestrian walk of the bridge and opening the banners one by one. me. And the final banner fluttered open:

“Pez?”