She took another breath, exhaling hard before finally facing me again. Her cheeks were red, but not because of the cold air outside. “I may have said something stupid,” she began, digging under her fingernails. “My manager, he… let’s just say he wasn’t thrilled. That is until I told him it was all part of my plan before going back on the road.”
Uh oh. That didn’t sound good. “And he believed it?”
“Hardly,” she scoffed, shaking her head a second later.
“Apparently, warming up, as he calls it, should take place in a coffee shop or other musical platform. Not a bookstore.”
I had to agree with him there. Maybe at one of the big chains, but here? I didn’t even sell CDs. “How did you get him to agree?” He obviously bought it, or she wouldn’t have been waiting for me as soon as I pulled up. Unless…
“Relax,” she said, her voice lighter than before. “I managed to calm the beast once I told him how many people showed up.
Truth be told, I think he’s relieved. The way I’ve been acting lately, distancing myself and all of that, he probably wondered if I wanted to go back on tour at all. So while he might not like my choice in venues, it’s still a positive sign for the near future.”
My heart didn’t agree. There she was, standing right in front of me but still out of reach. “It also wasn’t planned,” I said, my tone harder than I intended. Did that mean she’d have to perform inside the shop again? What about her manager?
Would he be around as well?
I don’t mind having folks in my shop, but if yesterday was any indication, I wouldn’t get much out of it. I got to hang around Cassidy, sure, but who paid the overhead fees? Who covered the time it took for me to clean up the shop once everyone else had gone?
“I know it isn’t what you wanted,” she said, pulling me from my thoughts, “but at least this way we get to see one another.”
I released a frustrated sigh and left it at that. I knew better than to get close to her, but I did it anyway. Good going, Evie.
Cassidy came around to my side of the counter and hooked her thumbs in my belt loops, giving them a tug until we were an inch apart. “This also means we get more us time when no one else is around.”
“Oh?” I asked, swallowing back my nerves.
“Mmm-hmm.” She leaned in close, pressing her body to mine with our lips no more than a breath apart. “Times like right now,” she went out, her eyes lidded as she met me in a feverish kiss.
Running her hand through my hair, she kept the other one on the small of my back, holding me close as she deepened our kiss. My back arched, my body seeking out her warmth as the smell of peaches and coconut filled the air.
I tried to argue, I tried to pull away, but my heart broke at the thought of putting any amount of space between us. So there I stayed, her lips pressed to mine as my mind drifted a million miles away.
No longer in the shop, we sailed toward the horizon.
Cerulean blue waves graced my fingertips as she leaned me back over the edge of the boat, my hair drifting on the water’s surface. Stranded in the ocean, the world was ours. No one
could touch us. There were no distractions, no responsibilities, and no land. Just a big wide ocean for us to explore together.
“What’re you thinking?” Her voice was faint under the sound of waves lapping at the side of the boat. I almost didn’t hear her, and if not for the fact her lips were right against my ear, I wouldn’t have.
“Nothing,” I lied, refusing to open my eyes so I could stay with her a while longer.
“Then why don’t you open your eyes?” she asked with a playful lilt in her voice.
I imagined her tilting her head to the side in that cute sort of way and smiled. “Because as soon as I do, this ends.”
“What ends?” She didn’t step away. She never let me go, remaining present with me as I admired her beauty and closeness from afar.
“This,” I said, holding on to the collar of her blouse when she went to pull away.
“Nothing’s ending,” she said, her voice light and comforting as I leaned into her embrace. “In fact, I’d say it’s more of a beginning.”
My heart jumped at that, stopping completely when I opened my eyes. She looked right at me, her smile just as warm and encouraging as before. “But your music—”
“Might complicate things for a little while, yes, but I realized something last night.” She gestured at the sofas in the lounge where we could sit down.
Checking the clock and knowing we had a few extra minutes to kill, I joined her without hesitation. Once I did, she continued.