I drew my lip between my teeth, conceding with a nod. Hayden led me out to the middle of the hardwood, maneuvering between couples swaying back and forth to Lady A’s “Dancin’ Away With My Heart.”
My hand found its place on his shoulder as the other grasped his, our fingers connecting like puzzle pieces. His palm was warm against my waist, but the heat between us wasn’t stifling. The opposite, actually. Being in Hayden’s arms was comforting. Safe.
My eyes darted around the room as I let him lead, my steps falling perfectly into place with his. My gaze bounced back to him, finding his deep-blue stare already trained on me.
“Funny, it feels like just yesterday we were dancing like this. Coldplay, though, right?” He smirked, and memories flooded my mind.
The high school gymnasium floor was covered in a black tarp, with string lights and a giant disco ball straight out of the seventies hanging from the rafters. Blue tulle and silver stars covered the gym as decorations for the “Starry Night” homecoming dance theme. Students crowded the dance floor and the snack and drinks table as conversational chatter floated around.
A DJ in the corner played school-appropriate pop music that was a little bit boring for my tastes, but what did I know?
I watched as the girls in my class flirted with their boyfriends or the ones they wanted to go out with. I wasn’t really friends with them—even Clare and I had drifted apart once I stopped riding the bus. I just didn’t have much in common with them. They liked shopping, getting their nails done, and talking about the various boys they had crushes on. They weren’t interested in horses or rodeo, and there was only one boy who I liked.
Lilac satin hugged my body, and the applique flowers on the straps of my dress scratched my skin. I resisted the urge to pull the tiny petals off the dress, keeping my hands at my sides instead. The only comfortable part of my outfit was my brown cowboy boots.
I didn’t plan on going to the dance at all, much less dressing up,but Mae was so excited. She didn’t have a daughter, and with Hayden and I being seniors, this was her one opportunity to play dress-up with me. How could I deny her that?
Mae was more of a mother to me than my own. My mom wouldn’t have cared if I wanted to go to a high school dance—be a normal teenager. She would have done whatever my dad wanted, which was to probably not let me go.
Truthfully, I hadn’t seen my dad in a while. Maybe he’d skipped town or gotten arrested somewhere. Or better yet, maybe he’d gotten hit by a car.
Fingers tapped on my shoulder, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“Wanna dance?” Hayden asked as I spun around.
“Uh…I don’t really know how to,” I mumbled, fidgeting with my dress.
He took my hand, leading me out onto the makeshift dance floor. “I’ll teach you.”
The song hit its crescendo, and he spun me out—all of my daydreams of the past dissipating—then back into his arms.
“What’s on your mind?” he murmured into my hair.
“Nothing, really. I’m just trying not to step on your feet or trip,” I admitted with a laugh.
He hooked a finger under my chin with a delicate touch. “I’ve got you, Skip. I won’t let you fall, remember?”
Too late for that.
My mind latched onto the lyrics, thinking about how perfectly they described my feelings toward Hayden. All these years, all this time apart, and we still wound up back in each other’s lives.
Like planets set to always revolve around each other, forever in the same orbit. They may have been apart for some time, but eventually, even if it was only once in alifetime, they’d find their way back to each other—find a way to align once again.
I wanted to believe this was mine and Hayden’s once-in-a-lifetime chance.
Perhaps he believed it, too.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
hayden
Icouldn’t get the image of Sierra stealing my hat last night at the bar out of my head. The memory flashed through my mind on a loop. I’d never seen her get jealous before—definitely not enough to fall into a Western stereotype—but I would be a lying man if I said I didn’t like it.
We were getting back on the road early today, because the weather predicted a thunderstorm rolling in that afternoon.
It appeared that the weatherman was correct for once. Dark, imposing clouds swirled in the distance, and my best guess was that we’d end up driving through the storm regardless of the time we left.
Sierra grumbled as she dragged her duffle bags out of the room toward the elevator. “Remind me again why I brought so much shit?”
