Later, as Masha packed her gear, he appeared beside her. “You review everything,” he said, not a question. “But you never just listen.”

That was the first crack in the fortress.

Masha lived at 120 beats per minute.

Liam found her there. “You look like you need a bad movie and worse pizza,” he said.

Her lifestyle is still entertainment. But her heart? That’s the only thing she no longer performs.

She blinked. No one had ever said that. “I listen for a living,” she replied, sharper than intended.