Page 11 of Another Fox Bites the Dust

Half the people walking along around us glance over at Piper, who’s waving her free hand frantically while still dragging me behind her. “Hey, Luke!”

He turns.

Our eyes lock.

A smile quirks at his lips when he takes in Piper heaving me in his direction, a dimple appearing in his right cheek.

If I was into men right now, which I’m not, I might find him extremely attractive. But the attraction is overshadowed by the intense humiliation.

He must think I’m a complete moron, which is fine, right? I don’t care what he thinks. Why would I? The last thing I need is a hot musician in my life.

And then he’s in front of us and Piper is stretching out her hand to him, and his eyes meet mine, full of knowing amusement.

My face goes scorching hot.

If this day gets any better, by noon I’ll be rolling around in shards of glass.

ChapterFour

Luke

“Hi, Luke. It’s so nice to see you again.” Piper shakes my hand, smiling warmly.

Mindy stands behind her, hovering like a helicopter parent.

“Piper Fox. Always a pleasure.” I release her hand and nod toward Mindy. “Hi there.”

“Hey.” Her cheeks are flushed. She forces a smile, crosses her arms over her chest, and looks away.

The first time I saw Mindy, almost a year ago, she was a vibrant force of energy.

Now—and I think it’s a result of more than our little crash—she’s paler and thinner. Lines of tension bracket her mouth and radiate from her eyes.

Concern pinches at me. Perhaps her frailty is at least partly because of our run-in this morning, although I’m sure the past few months have taken their toll. “How’s the head? It bothering you?”

Piper frowns, her eyes flicking from me to Mindy. “What? What happened to your head?”

“Nothing. It’s fine. I’m fine. Everything’s fine.” She clears her throat. “Are you busking somewhere nearby?”

I suppose this means she didn’t tell Piper about our little run-in, considering the not-so-subtle subject change and nervous, repetitive statements.

I don’t want to lie, so I settle on a half-truth. “Just scoping out the competition.” I wave a hand at the violinist and offer an easy smile, but the thought of pulling out my guitar and playing right here on the main thoroughfare sends a swarm of nerves prickling up the back of my neck.

Piper squints at me. “Any progress since last summer?”

Mindy’s mouth twitches. “Yeah, anyone else fall for the whole John CusackSay Anythingroutine?”

Ah, so she does remember. “A couple of bites. Nothing solid yet.” And the bites were more like nibbles since most of them had me escorted off their property.

I had to do it, though. I promised Kevin I would try everything, and I keep my promises. He loved that damn movie.

Piper cocks her head, studying me. “I would love to hear you play sometime.”

Mindy watches the exchange, her bow-shaped mouth puckering slightly in thought.

Don’t stare at her mouth.

I wrench my gaze back to Piper. “No gigs coming up. I could email you some audio files, though, if you’re really interested.” Since that’s the only way anyone will ever hear me play.

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