Page 86 of The Charmed Friends of Trove Isle
Melody laughed. “I think I’m up to the challenge.”
His voice dipped low. “I know you are.”
They swayed for a few more seconds. Then Melody tuned-in to the song. She recognized it now. It was a classic.
“Did you request this song?” she asked, searching his eyes.
“Mm-hm. You and I were never an item. Only in my imagination. But,” he shrugged, “this song used to play all the time when we were in high school. And every time I heard it, I thought of you.”
“You did?” Melody swallowed. Her throat was dry. Her heart pattered. She listened to the words, trying to place the singer. “It’s by Chicago?”
“One of my all-time favorite bands. There are perks to being a chaperone. I requested a few songs that these kids have probably never heard of. Maybe it’ll turn into one of these couples’ songs.” He grinned before starting to sing quietly along.
Tears burned behind Melody’s eyes. She blinked them away, feeling too much in this moment. She wanted to disappear. Run away. Stay exactly where she was and never leave. She wanted all these things at once. “Christopher,” she said, the word coming out as a plea.
“It’s just a song, Mel. And it was just a crush that I had. Those first crushes are brutal though. You feel everything one hundred percent.”
“That’s how Alyssa felt about you back then.”
There was something sad in Christopher’s eyes. “When one crushes that hard, it’s rarely ever reciprocated. Two people crushing on each other at the same time is like lightning striking. When it happens though, I think it’s probably pretty special.”
Melody was having a hard time pulling in a deep breath. “We’re probably too old for that kind of crush now.”
He lifted his finger and brushed a lock of her hair off her cheek. “Speak for yourself. I’m not sure I’ll ever get over my first crush.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. What could she say? She wasn’t staying in Trove. She couldn’t. Wasn’t it enough that she had come home for a visit?
Her cell phone rang out from the tiny purse she kept along her shoulder. “Oh. I thought I turned that thing off.” She hadn’t turned it off though because she’d wanted to make sure Liz could call her if she was having difficulties. Melody dug through her purse and pulled her phone out, seeing Candy North’s name on her screen—the woman who wanted to buy the thrift store. Melody owed her an answer by tomorrow. “I have to take this.” Melody looked back up at Christopher. Then she stepped back and gave him an apologetic look. Truly, the call could probably be returned later in the evening, but her instinct to run overpowered her when she was presented with the excuse to slip away.
Christopher didn’t seem to mind. “I should probably sample that punch and make sure history doesn’t repeat itself. Spiking the beverage seems to be a rite of passage at these types of things.”
Melody broke into a small laugh, relieved at how easygoing he was. “Were we ever so rebellious?” she asked.
“Not me.” He feigned an innocent look that made a fluttering sensation in her chest. “Save me another dance later?”
“Of course.”
Melody turned and hurried toward a door, hoping she’d find privacy on the other side. The phone had stopped ringing. She tapped the screen to re-dial.
“This is Candy,” a woman’s voice answered.
“It’s Melody Palmer, returning your call.”
“Yes. Melody, hi. I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time.”
Melody wasn’t sure if the timing was good or bad. Part of her wished she were still swaying in Christopher’s arms. “You didn’t.”
“I’m calling to see if you have an answer for me. I gave you a timeline and I meant it.”
Melody closed her eyes. She could still hear the music from just beyond the door. The slow song had stopped and a faster tempo was thumping through the speakers in the next room. “Have you reconsidered keeping the store as my great-aunt’s thrift store?”
Candy cleared her throat. “I don’t sell used things. I sell new and unique women’s clothing. I want to run a boutique, not a secondhand mess.”
Melody flinched as tension gathered in her chest. Did the woman have to be so rude? “Can I have a little more time to consider?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t have time to waste,” the woman said bluntly. “I can find another place.”
Melody pressed a hand to her chest. The thrift store was Jo’s dream, but Jo wasn’t here anymore. And neither was Melody’s mom. Or Alyssa. She’d lost so much in this town, and tonight just seemed to bring all the emotions to the surface. She’d enjoyed dancing with Christopher, but the desire to run away hadn’t been this strong since the first day she’d arrived a couple weeks ago. She felt conflicted and lost. “Okay,” Melody said quietly.
