She hugs me back. “Missed you too, girl.”
Between school and work, I’ve wanted to spend my free time with Hollis, which has meant sacrificing time with my friends and family. They have their own lives too, so even if I reach out, meeting up is difficult. I lucked out Willow and Dean could come tonight.
The crowd sways to the song and the four of us join in—Kira making crude gestur
es at Rush, which makes me want to run the other way.
She’s open at all times with what she wants. I’m not. If I confessed to her what Hollis and I do behind closed doors she’d either faint or smack me on the butt for a job well done.
Forget it, she’d never faint. Nothing surprises her.
The song ends and already the guys are damp with sweat from the lights and the press of heated bodies in the small space. If Griffin’s ever starts charging people to attend these things the place will make a fortune.
“We’re going to slow it down with this one,” Hollis says, leaning into the microphone.
The notes of the guitar fill the air before Hollis begins to sing.
“I don’t know how to prove this to you,
so I put pen to paper, my heart on my sleeve,
bleeding out for you. Here I stand, just a man telling you this is real.
This spark isn’t a flickering ember, it’s every star in the sky.
I’ll give you the world.
I’ll give you me,
if you just see this is real.
I’m here to stay, to make you mine.”
My heart stutters in my chest. He’s singing our song. The one he wrote for me. The vows he made to me before I even understood that’s truly what they were. I feel tears prick my eyes and I clasp my hands beneath my chin as I sway to the song.
Seeing other people respond to the song makes me happy—knowing the words Hollis poured out on the page straight from his heart can connect with other people is awe-inspiring.
I want to glance over at my dad and uncles, to see what they think, but I can’t take my eyes off of Hollis.
His eyes connect with mine and he offers me a smile. Just as quickly he’s moved on, playing to the crowd.
I’m desperate to touch him, hold him, kiss him, show him how much I love him.
Who knew listening to a song written for you was such a turn on?
“I want to give you the world,
whatever you ask it’s never too much.
Anything it takes to make you mine.
Please believe me when I say,
this is real.
Oh baby, this is real.”
Every word pierces my heart making me fall more and more in love with him. Despite hearing the song before, there’s something different about hearing it now after all that’s changed between us.