Page 92 of Secondhand Smoke
Their mouths grew more desperate by the second.
He dropped to her neck and groaned into the skin above her collar. It burned his lips, and he took his time brushing them there.
Her hands gripped his shoulders, her breath rustling over his hair.
“I’ve thought of this a million times,” he confessed softly.
She said his name. He wanted to confess everything to her.
“Barrett!” Dennis’s yell was a tragedy.
They both froze, waiting a few seconds to see if they had heard correctly. His lips tingled where they stilled over her skin.
“Barrett! Duncan! You guys better be alive.” It was closer this time.
Barrett groaned and pulled away. He leaned his forehead against hers to steady himself. If he let go too soon, he would drop to his knees.
He still couldn’t see her face in the dark, but he could feel her smile radiating. He breathed a heavy laugh. “They’re the nosiest bastards in the world.”
“Don’t forget you’re one of them,” she teased.
Barrett shook his head and tsked his tongue. “Don’t you forget I’m practically yours now.” He leaned forward, brushing his lips against hers for a few more seconds. “If you want me.”
She giggled, and Barrett closed his eyes to take in the sound.
“We’re way past that point.”
37 - Nell
Nell had to do a double take.
Hallucinating Barrett sitting on the curb outside her house wasn’t outside the realm of her possibilities, but when she looked the second time, he was still there, his grin partially hidden by a shrub.
“What are you doing here?” She hadn’t even gotten on her bike yet to ride to his house. She glanced over her shoulder, making sure neither of her parents were watching her from the window.
“Well, I had to let you know that our lesson venue had changed somehow, but I couldn’t just walk up and knock on your door, now could I?” He stood up, wiping dirt from his jeans. “So I thought I’d wait out here for you. Surprise.”
Yes, surprise. A very nice one.
She’d take every second of time he would give her and more.
It was nice to have him here, really in front of her and not just in the scenes from the other night that she replayed in her mind.
Nell pursed her lips, knowing it did nothing to hide her smile. “Where are we going?”
“That’s the second part of the surprise.” He winked, then took the bike from her as he began leading her down the hill.
* * *
“We’re going here?” Nell asked as he leaned her bike against the side of the music shop. He nodded and led her in, the familiar ring of the door welcoming them.
Someone she didn’t know was working today instead of Toni, which was probably why Barrett had chosen to bring her there. She doubted he would take her if he thought Toni would make cheeky comments at them the whole time.
“It may be where I work, but it’s also the only place in town where you can find just about any music you need. You don’t think I just picked up some random job, do you?” He led her back toward the cassettes.
Nell followed him closely, admiring the way he spoke with such animation as he focused intently on the cassettes, fingering through them as he looked for specific ones. He clearly knew exactly what he was looking for. He’d find one, pick it up, find another, and pile them together.
“In our case, it’s also the best place to study some of the world’s best guitarists. It’s the only kind of library I find worthwhile.”
