Page 44 of Reckless At Raleigh High
“Actually Harry, I’m so sorry to do this to you, but I’m not feeling we—”
I clamp my hand over Silver’s mouth, widening my smile. “Don’t listen to a word that comes out of her mouth. Silver’s been stuck down by a bout of nerves. She’s gonna be fine once she gets up there and starts playing.”
Silver groans through my fingers, which makes Harry frown worriedly. “You’re sure? I mean, you don’t have to play if you don’t want to. It’s not a problem. If you don’t think you can do it, the juke box is fine.”
I’m not planning on uncovering Silver’s mouth but she sticks her tongue out, wetting my hand, and it feels fucking gross, so I release her. “Parisi,” I warn. “What’s the big deal. You’ve played for me before. Your students, too. There’s no one here.”
She casts uncertain eyes around the diner, nervously plucking at the hem of her t-shirt. Finally, she adopts a resigned expression, snagging a fry from the basket in front of us and shoving it into her mouth. “Fine. I’ll play. But if I smash all of these fries and then throw up all over the stage, I will not be held accountable.”
Harry accepts her terms surprisingly quickly. “You’re a star, Silver. Your dad’s gonna be so proud.”
“Urgh, no! You didn’tinvitehim?”
“Of course I did. He’s your biggest fan, sweetheart. I also told Heather and Debra from the wool shop. And Ms. Jones from the school said she’d try to pop by. I know a couple of folk are still busy with work and whatnot, but I’m expecting quite the crowd after five. I have some Pepto in the back if you need it.”
He makes a sharp exit from the table, leaving before Silver can change her mind. She shoots daggers at me, feigning annoyance, but I know the truth: the prospect of playing in front of a large group of people is terrifying the shit out of her.
“How the fuck areyounot freaking out right now?” she demands sulkily, jamming another fry into her mouth.
“I don’t give a fuck about any of these people. I could give two shits if they like me or my playing. This is a low stakes game. The only person’s opinion that matters to me is yours, and I’ve already played for you. As far as I’m concerned, these bastards can all go fuck themselves.”
She thinks about this for a second. “So…you don’t care what mydadthinks? His opinion of you isn’t important to you? Not even a teeny, tiny bit?”
Okay, so she has me there. I guess I care about Cam’s opinion. Just a teeny, tiny bit. I don’t like admitting it, though. Shrugging, I plant a kiss against her temple,hmming. “I suppose it’d suck a little if he thought I was a hack. Won’t stop me from getting up there and playing, though,Argento.” Leaning down a little, so that my mouth is right next to her ear, I whisper my next words carefully. “If I suffered from performance anxiety, I wouldn’t have fucked you in front of a room full of people, would I,dolcezza?”
She shivers, like she’s remembering the night we descended into the basement of the Rock and gave in to our basest desires. It wasn’t such a long way for me to fall from innocence—I’ve been a depraved bastard for a long time now—but for Silver that fall must have felt like skydiving without a fucking parachute.
Her eyes are feverish, her cheeks flushed when she pulls back and looks up at me. I’m addicted to the sight of Silver when she’s turned on; the hitch of her breath in her throat and the way she licks at her lips like she’d suddenly kill a man for a glass of water makes my dick hard every single time. A second ago, she was afraid of what was going to happen when she took her seat up on the tiny, low stage in the corner of the diner. All it took to distract her and banish her worry was the mention of my hard cock inside her.
I really amthatfucking good.
“You look pleased with yourself.” Silver brushes her fingers through the front of my hair, and it’s my turn to shiver now; I lose my shit every time she touches my scalp. I can’t help it. I wonder if she knows how utterly powerless I am against her whenever she touches me like this. “This is nothing like fucking me in front of a room full of people, though,” she says.
“What, you think playing a guitar is scarier than a bunch of people watching you get penetrated?”
She laughs, blushing deeply. God, my little Silver Parisi.Mine. She has no idea how fucking beautiful she is. She shyly feeds herself a fry, trying to hide from me behind the curtain of her hair. “I laid my body bare for people to see then.” She takes a second, thinking. “I know it sounds stupid, but…when I play, it feels different. I’m laying mysoulbare. And that’s almost as intimidating as you are, Alessandro Moretti.”
With a careful touch, I sweep her hair back behind her ear, removing the shield she put up to disguise her embarrassment. “That doesn’t sound stupid. It makes sense. You’re a fucking legend, though. You make that guitar weep when you play it. People are gonna lose their minds. And…side note, I am not intimidating. I’mmisunderstood.”
“Hah!” She covers her mouth with the back of her hand. “You do know that you terrify people, right?”
“Only the ones who piss me off.”
“You nearly made Halliday cry at lunch yesterday.”
“Yeah, well. She pissed me off. I like Halliday. Sounds like she’s dealing with her own shit at home, too. She had a hand in making your life a waking nightmare, though. It’s gonna take more than a couple of pieces of cake and a few tears to make up for that.”
“Should I make her walk barefoot across hot coals?” She raises an eyebrow, the comment a clear dig. She thinks I’m being too hard on her remorseful friend. Silver’s still a good person, though. Somehow, against all the odds, she’s still trying to see the good in other people, to give them the benefit of the doubt, whereas I’m more of the opinion that people are dog shit assholes who need to bleed in exchange for a second chance.
“She’s not Kacey,” Silver says quietly, dipping a fry into her milkshake. “Halliday’s softer. Not as resilient. If this were Kacey trying to worm her way back into my good graces, then it’d be a different story. You know what I think?”
Eternally. Always. The inside of that beautiful head of yours intrigues the living shit out of me.I’m embarrassed by how much time I spend thinking about what goes on in there.
I clear my throat. “Sure.”
“I think you should probably take a leaf out of my book and go a little easier on Zander. He’s really trying to make things right with you.”
My smile wants to shrivel up and die—the mere mention of Zander Hawkins will have that effect on a guy—but I fix it firmly in place. “He’s got a thick skin. He can take it.”
