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“Um…something about why you are so smooth.” I don’t sound much more coherent than he does.
“Oh, right. I think that it’s just us, baby. I’ve never felt like this before and I think if you were any other girl, you wouldn’t think I’m so smooth. We fit together and it’s like I’ve known you my entire life or loved you in a previous one. I don’t know. I can’t find a good way to explain it but we’re just connected. Don’t you feel it, Emma?”
“Yeah, I feel it.”
“See? We were inevitable.”
“Inevitable,” I say, testing the word out for myself.
“Like two magnets. When they are far enough apart, they will stay apart but as soon as you move one closer to the other, they have no choice but to crash together. As soon as you walked into my tattoo shop, this was the outcome. We couldn’t fight the pull of us.”
“Nix,” I breathe, my heart pounding in my chest as tears sting my eyes. He leans down, kissing me softly again before pulling away and tucking me into his side again.
“So, will you tell me about him?” he asks again, purposely not meeting my gaze. I suck in a breath and lay my head on his shoulder.
“Maybe someday but just know that you could never be him, Nix. Even on your worst day, you’re ten times the man Ryan ever was.”
His fingers dig into my hair and he presses his lips to my forehead. “Thank you, baby,” he whispers against my skin and I wrap my arms around his waist as the screen in front of us flickers to life.
* * * *
Glancing up at the live band playing on the stage across from me, I smile, bopping my head to the music as I wipe down the bar in front of me. Working at Moe’s is always fun but there’s a certain magic to the place when Moe brings a live band in to play.
“Not gonna lie, baby girl,” Moe says, drawing my attention to where he’s sitting on one of the barstools doing paperwork. “I’ve missed that smile.”
My brow furrows. “What are you talkin’ about?”
“Oh, nothing. I just think my nephew is doing you a world of good.” He smiles at me, a little twinkle in his eye, and I scoff as I roll my eyes. I’ve been pretty tight-lipped about my relationship with Nix because I didn’t want my family getting involved before I was sure where this thing was going. It’s only been a few days since our date in the park but things are just flowing so smoothly that I can’t help but get caught up in it.
“I think you’re losing your mind in your old age, Uncle Moe.”
His smile grows and he slaps his hand on the bar. “That right there. That’s the girl we’ve been missing.”
I blush, glancing down at the floor while I shake my head at my crazy uncle. So maybe he’s right… maybe Nix brings out parts of me that Ryan buried deep under hidden wounds but I don’t want them to know that yet.
“You been sampling the merchandise tonight, Moe?”
He chuckles, letting me know with a single look that he’s not buying any of this. “That’s all right, girl. You just keep playing it off but I’m smarter than I look.”
He shuffles his papers together and scoops them up off the bar before heading back to the office. It’s almost eight and this place will start getting busy soon so I walk down the length of the bar one last time, making sure everything is stocked and ready before doing a perusal of the tables.
As I step out from behind the bar and clean off a few tables, I wonder how much longer I’ll really be able to keep Nix and I a secret. Not that I really want to keep him a secret but it feels safe that way – like no one can get to us and I want to savor that feeling just a little bit longer.
“Emma Harrington?” someone asks from behind me as I walk behind the bar again and I turn around, my stomach sinking when I see the girl who always delivered flowers from Ryan.
“That’s me,” I say, raising my hand and she offers me a warm smile as I approach her with the bar separating us. She hands me a small bouquet of roses before turning and I watch her leave, my heart pounding in my chest. A hand settles on my lower back, making me jump as I glance up at Trey. He gazes down at me with concerned eyes and lifts his chin in the direction of the flowers in my hand.
“Find the card, Em.”
I nod and start digging through the small arrangement until I find the little white envelope that makes it hard to breathe. Are these from Ryan? Someone else? Sucking in a nervous breath, I open it and pull the card out.
Emma,
That yellow dress was always my favorite.
I miss you and I’ll see you soon, baby.
The air punches out of my lungs and the card falls from my hand, fluttering to the glossy bar top before Trey scoops it up as I struggle to breathe. I knew he was out there somewhere, probably watching me, but his silence made it easy to push to the back of my mind. Trey hisses a curse next to me and his arm tightens around my waist.
