Page 96 of Break the Ice
“Yes.”
“Let’s go, Lucky.” I pull back and open my door. “There’s a few places here that do piercings.”
“Now?”
“Do you want to do it?”
Clutching the earrings in one hand, she rubs her exposed lobe with the other. “Does it hurt?”
“Umm, well, I’ve never had my ears pierced, but if you need it, they can use numbing spray beforehand. It’s done in seconds. When Isla had her ears pierced it was quick.”
“I’m not a scaredy cat, I just?—”
I take her hand, giving it a squeeze. “I’ll hold your hand the whole time.”
“You promise?”
“Cross my heart.”
I don’t make a move until she decides for herself that it really is something she wants to do. As much as I want to stick it to the assholes that have hurt her and Elijah, I’m not going to pressure Finley into anything.
After a quiet moment, she opens her door and gets back out of the car, still clutching the earrings in her hand. I give her a few more seconds in case she changes her mind. When she meanders to the back of the car, I follow her, and we head back into the mall hand in hand.
“Will they use a needle? I don’t like needles,” Finley says, nerves wobbling her pitched voice.
“They used a piercing gun when Isla had hers done.”
“Okay,” she breathes, pausing to watch a kid getting her ears pierced through the store window.
The young girl barely flinches and it’s over without any tears, which sets Finley at ease. With a deep inhale, she pulls her shoulders back before tugging me inside the store.
It takes no time at all for the store assistant to get Finley settled. She’s disappointed when she finds out that she can’t wear the hoops straightaway, however, the small pearl studs that I point out make her smile shine just like the hoops did.
“Oh Lord,” she pants as I lace our fingers together.
Her hands are clammy and softer than Eli’s. They’re way smaller, totally eclipsed by my hold unlike his large ones. Still, that electric warmth that his zapped me with shoots up my arm.
“Don’t let go,” she tells me.
I grip her hand tighter. “Never.”
The assistant gives her some reassurance, showing her how the gun works before marking the spot for the hole.
I’m excited for Finley. It may not seem like a big deal to other people around us, but her pulse is throbbing in my hand with every second that passes, and the store assistant loads the earrings into the gun.
“Ready?” She asks Finley.
Wide blue eyes flash to mine as her hand clenches around mine. “Ready.”
It’s as quick as I recall Isla’s piercing being. And Finley doesn’t flinch once. When it’s done, the warmth of pride that inflates my chest makes it impossible to hide my grin. Especially when the assistant shows Finley her ears and her watery smile trembles with the magnitude of her emotions.
“I can’t believe I actually did it,” she marvels while we walk back to the car. “It feels weird. My ears are throbbing, and my heart is pounding, and it feels so freaking good.”
I’m in awe of her glow. The joy radiating from her is infectious. To the point that I can’t breathe past the fullness pushing at my ribs. I’ve never felt this kind of satisfaction and accomplishment, not even after winning an impossible game.
This girl, though, she’s got me feeling all kinds of ways I’ve never felt before. And every time I look at her, and she smiles, it feels like I’m closer than I’ve ever been to Elijah. The love she has for him and vice versa is not simply visible, but it’s palpable.
As reckless as it may be, a part of me begins to wonder if allowing myself to care for Finley is how I can love Elijah the way I want to. The way that I need to. That my soul burns to.
