Everybody Finds Out

Part 10

"It just... doesn't sound right." Lindsey was struggling to share his opinion, afraid it might start their first argument with Stevie.

"What does that mean, right?" Stevie shot him a look through the glass wall of the recording booth. "I'm not signing it right, I don't sound good? What?"

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're a bit behind every single time so far."

"I don't think that I am." Stevie shrugged, taking a sip from her cup of tea. "Am I, Mick?"

Mick had hoped to be left out of it. His eyes moved from Stevie to Lindsey and back to her again. He shifted in his seat, beginning to feel uncomfortable. "Well... I mean..."

"You can just spit it out, Mick. I'm a big girl. I can take constructive criticism." Stevie glanced at Lindsey, his face fell. He'd been trying hard to stay away from any fights. 

"I guess, just a tiny bit." Mick nodded. "But you don't sound bad at all, you sound great."

"Alright." Stevie cleared her throat and focused on Lindsey again. "I'll try to keep up this time. Let's try again."

"Stevie, can I talk to you alone?" He asked, giving Mick a look, indicating he should leave.

"You can stay, Mick. We're all working on the same project aren't we?" She kept her voice calm, messing with the lyrics sheets in front of her. 

Exhaling heavily, Lindsey chewed on the inside of his cheek. "I don't want to argue."

"We're not, though, are we?" She looked at him over the top of her glasses. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

Mick, even though Stevie had told him to stay, upped and left. Lindsey asked Stevie to come out and she did, not without a deep sigh indicating her annoyance.

"Steph, please, let's not start, okay?"

She shrugged, folding her arms over her chest. "Start what? I don't know, why you're making such a big deal out of nothing. This is us, this is how we work. You push me, I get frustrated, but we get results."

"But..." Lindsey rested his hands on her shoulders, slightly melting away that icy exterior. "Is it really necessary? I didn't even say anything for you to behave like this."

She had to admit, he was right. "It's not about what you said to me." Stevie slumped down on the couch and Lindsey joined her. 

"I don't understand." Lindsey shook his head, waiting for her to elaborate.

"I didn't mean to, but I overheard your conversation with your wife earlier." Stevie stared straight ahead, avoiding his eyes, spinning a bracelet around her wrist. "I heard you telling her, you loved her, and I thought about this morning... I feel guilty. You know, I don't do well with guilt." 

Lindsey felt relief wash over him, quickly realizing where the misunderstanding lay. "I did talk to Kristen, but I said, I love you, sweetheart, to Leelee. Kristen handed the phone over to the kids about a minute into our conversation."

Lifting her head up, Stevie turned to face him. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Lindsey nodded, running his hand up and down her back. 

"I feel so stupid." Stevie hid her face in the palms of her hands.

"Don't." He said, kissing her temple. "I get it. Please, Stevie, don't overreact the way you usually do. I know that we kind of got carried away in the morning, but I don't regret one second of it."

"Neither do I, but maybe we should?" She locked their eyes, hoping to find an honest answer in his. "You're a married man, Lindsey, with a family. I... I don't know." She sighed, shaking her head. 

"I'm begging you, Stevie, don't shut me out. You know, what you mean to me." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, drawing her in closer. "I'm asking you again." He spoke up, when she remained silent. "Please, come see me later tonight. We can talk about whatever is bothering you, okay?"

She didn't want to tell him, he had to wait and see, again. Straightening up, Stevie shrugged Lindsey's arm off and rose to her feet. "Let's try and get this song finished."