Page 78 of Hang the Moon
She snapped another picture and another soon after that, capturing him midlaugh.
“Oh, come on.Annie.” He stepped forward. “Don’t I get a turn?”
She backed away, leaving the cover of the pavilion, stepping out onto the strip of grass that led down to a set of concrete stairs that descended into the lake.
“Quit running away from me,” he gasped out, laughing. He narrowly avoided the group of children playing and quickened his steps, practically running. Up ahead, Annie quickened her stride, her dress flapping around her ankles.
She stopped at the edge of the lake. His momentum too great, Brendon was forced to wrap his arms around her waist to keep from barreling into her. Annie caught herself with her hands splayed against his stomach.
He smiled down at her, and the blue-hued twilight played against the high crests of her cheeks, highlighting the sweep of her lashes and the curve of her upper lip.
“I think... I think I like having you chase me,” she whispered.
Inhaling the brackish smell of lake water and the delicate scent of Annie’s perfume, he held still as she slid her hands higher, resting them on his chest. Beneath her palms, his heart pounded, making it obvious how much he wanted her.
“I caught you,” he rasped. “What do I get?”
Heat curled deep in his gut when the tip of her tongue slipped out from between her lips.
“I guess that would all depend on what you want,” she whispered, eyes only leaving his for a split-second glance at his mouth.
Annie’s hands drifted over his shoulders and wrapped around the back of his neck in a move that brought them closer, barely asliver of space between their bodies. She twirled her fingers into the short strands at his nape and craned her neck, staring up at him from beneath low lids.
Somewhere not far behind them, a child’s shriek pierced the air, reminding him they weren’t alone. Even if he desperately wished they were, the things he wanted to do to her would be indecent for adult eyes, let alone children’s.
He made to take a step back, putting some much needed distance between them. Only there wasn’t room, one concrete stair the only thing separating him from the lake.
His contrite smile froze on his face as the ground disappeared from beneath him, the world tilting. Doing everything in his power to stay upright, he pinwheeled his arms at his sides as he careened backward, gasping as he plunged beneath the surface of the frigid water.
Chapter Fifteen
It could’ve been worse.”
Brendon flipped his blinker, turning onto Darcy’s street. “How?”
She clamped her lips together, hiding her smile. “You could’ve pulled me in with you?”
He put the car in park and shook his head slowly, lips twitching. “Maybe I should’ve.”
Had he, maybe they’d have had an excuse to leave the reception sooner. As it was, half the guests had rushed out of the pavilion at the sound of Brendon’s splashing in the lake, fully dressed, and it had taken thirty minutes of his assuring everyone he was no worse for wear—only wet—before he was able to grab a change of clothes from the gym bag he had stored in the tiny trunk of his car. They’d made their exit shortly after.
Unfortunately, she didn’t have his patience. Then again, he hadn’t done anything to recapture the moment since they’d gotten in his car. He’d hopped directly on Highway 520 and driven to Darcy’s without asking if she’d have rather gone tohis place, so he didn’t seem especially keen on rekindling the mood.
Which was fine. For the best, even. She’d gotten wrapped up in the moment, had too much fun, and let it go to her head. That was another problem with weddings, one she hadn’t shared with Brendon. For all their rubbery chicken, line dances, and antiquated traditions like garter tosses, Brendon was right about one thing.
Annie would’ve needed a heart of stone not to feelsomethingwatching two people stand up in front of all their family and friends, vowing to spend the rest of their lives together no matter what obstacles life threw their way. She didn’t have a heart of stone, not even close, and being here in Seattle, spending time with Brendon, was chipping away at the defenses shehaderected around her heart. Making her want things she had no business wanting. Desires that scared her shitless.
Big things, forever things, the sort of things that with each failed relationship and bad date had felt a little further out of reach. Made her feel a little more hopeless, resigned to the idea that romance was dead and there was no one out there who could prove otherwise to her. No one who’d even bother to try.
And then came Brendon.
If the circumstances were different, maybe what she felt, what Brendon made her feel, would be a risk worth taking.
But they weren’t.
So.
She reached for the door handle and gave Brendon a smile that felt fifty shades of flimsy, strained.Pained.“I had fun today, Brendon.”
