Page 113 of A Duet of Darkness and Dreams

A smile pulls at my lips. “I’m not sure, but that’s a good point.”

Dave takes another bite, chews, then swallows. “What did the hamburger name their baby?”

I tilt my head. “What?”

“Patty.”

A laugh bursts out of me and Dave smiles. “Where do hamburgers go to hook up?”

I roll my eyes but can’t hide my grin.

“A meatball.”

“Oh my god . . .”

“I could do this all day you know,” he threatens.

“Thank you.”

He holds my gaze with a knowing smile for a moment. “Hey, did you hear about the hamburger who couldn’t stop telling jokes?”

“Okay, I’m leaving.”

“He was on a roll!”

Walking across the cold,snowy parking lot toward the motel, I feel lighter than I have in weeks. Maybe Dave and I really can make this work. It’s not exactly what I want, but it’s enough. For now. There’s also something that makes me think he acts the way he does because he’s still not over something. Maybe if I can figure out what that is, things could change.

“So, Key mentioned you guys are performing a new song tomorrow?” I say, cutting through the silence of the night.

Dave nods. “Yeah. I mean, if the crowd requests an encore, that is.”

“What do you mean?”

He shrugs. “Al, doesn’t want us to deviate too much from our set, so we compromised.”

“Oh.”

“Besides, we haven’t had a crowd request an encore yet, so I think he’s feeling confident about keeping that new songa secret.”

I stop. “You haven’t played an encore?”

He stops too. “It’s fine. We’re still small-time. It’ll happen eventually, I’m sure.”

But my mind is already churning with ways I can make this happen for him. How happy it would make him. “I guess you never know, right?”

“Right.”

We arrive at the motel and I walk toward my room. I pause when I get there, only to look up and see Dave standing closer than normal. I’m reminded of the way he looked when he asked me to dance on Christmas. Despite the cold outside, I’m warm and the thought of his body against mine burns brightly in my mind. A clenching sensation in my core causes my hips to push forward as though searching for his.

“Thanks for reminding me to try new things,” he finally says with a bashful smile.

“You’re welcome.”

His breath rises in the cold air between us like little clouds. Then his fingers brush against mine, just for a moment. An accident. Or maybe it wasn’t.

“I, uh—” I mumble, pushing my hair behind my ears. “Well, good night.”

He blinks then takes a deep breath, stepping back. “Good night, Izzy.”

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