Page 114 of Dove
Josh opened the door and hopped out, wiping his face off with the shirt he still hadn’t managed to put on before throwing it over his shoulder to fish out his cellphone from his back pocket. “I could see what Eddie’s up to,” he suggested. “Maybe him or one of his brothers could bring us some.”
I grabbed mine from where I’d set it on the dash. “If they’re busy I can see if Rev’s free. She might be at the salon, but it’s worth a shot.”
Josh tapped at his phone a few times until it started ringing. He set it on the seat so he could slip his arms into the sleeves of his shirt and pull it down over his head.
“Hey, J-man,” Eddie’s cheerful voice buzzed, too loud for the small speaker. “Miss me?”
“Like a hen misses her eggs,” Josh snarked, picking the phone up.
“You sure do know how to make a guy feel special.”
Here we go, I thought with a mental eyeroll. Even over the phone these two were a trip. Eddie carried the same energy as chugging ten Red Bulls, which didn’t match Josh’s laidback personality at all. But put them together, and somehow, they fit perfectly. Eddie became Thing One to Josh’s Thing two. Josh became the Tweedle Dee to Eddie’s Tweedle Dum. I’d been witness to one too many idiotic ventures when these two got together.
Secretly, it made me happy to hear their banter after all this time.
“Oh, you’re special alright.”
“Ouch, that one hurt, man. I hope you didn’t call just to wound my ego.”
Josh chuckled, resting an arm along the top of the truck. “I’m sure your ego will survive.” Like moths to a flame, my eyes were drawn to the muscles of his biceps as they strained against the sleeve of his t-shirt. “Actually, I called to ask a favor. You busy? I got the Chevy up and running but, uh, kind of ran out of fuel.”
“Kind of?” Eddie mocked. “You forgot it takes some or what?”
Josh rolled his eyes. “Alright, smartass, you free to bring me enough to get back homeor what? We’re near the old mill on Pine, just past crazy Shep’s junkyard.”
“We?” he questioned, intrigued.
Before he could get any crazy ideas of who Josh might be with, I interjected. “Hi, Eddie.”
“Hey, Birdy. Well, I can’t very well leaveyoustranded. Give me a sec, hold on.” A rustling sound came over the speakers asEddie set the phone down, his voice growing farther away as he shouted something to someone in Spanish.
Josh shook his head amusedly. “Guess I’m chopped liver.”
“We’ll be here all day if we wait for Eddie,” I teased, although there was truth behind it. “He’s probably at the restaurant. We’ll be squeezed in between deliveries.”
Josh’s arm came down to rest along the steering wheel and he leaned in, keeping the phone outside the truck.
“You in a hurry, little dove?” he drawled. Something in his tone had my eyes flicking to the phone then back to him.
“No,” I answered quietly. Then, throwing caution to the wind, I added playfully, “Just wondering what we’ll do while we’re waiting.”
“Oh,” Josh’s voice grew huskier, the beginnings of an impish smile curling on his lips. “I have a few ideas.”
The air that had been light and carefree a moment ago grew heavy between us, and I inched forward, needing to know what those ideas were. Our lips hovered centimeters apart, close enough that our shallow breaths mingled, his exhales becoming my inhales. My tongue came out to wet my bottom lip, grazing his, and his breathe caught as his eyes darkened hungrily.
“Tease,” he whispered hoarsely, so close I felt his lips form the word as he said it.
Maybe I was teasing, just a bit, but I couldn’t help it. As if summoned by his suggestion, the throb from earlier was back, deeper and more demanding than it had been before, reminding me that it’d been days since we’d done anything more than kiss.
“Josh?” Eddie’s boisterous voice came back over the line, causing us to flinch away from each other as if he’d somehow see how close we were through the screen.
Josh cleared his throat, leaning back into the arm braced against the steering wheel. “I’m here.”
Separating did nothing to dispel the electricity that charged between us. The space just gave him room to stare, raking his gaze over me with intensity, causing me to shiver with anticipation. A thrill shot through me when his eyes landed back on mine, dark and compelling.
“One small prob. We just got an order the size of this town and we’re short in the kitchen,” Eddie explained regretfully. “Tia’s out sick and Zeke’s not here today. Fucker requested off and won’t tell us why, though we all know why. She’s a four-foot firecracker that cuts hair.”
My eyebrows rose. Reverie and I hadn’t talked since the night after the bar, where I’d given her a brief, nondescript update. The fact I hadn’t heard from her, and she hadn’t pestered me for more details should have tipped me off, but I assumed she was busy with moving back home and starting at Betty’s salon. Not running around with Zeke.
