“What if we get lost?” I tease.
“Kia,” he whispers, blowing on my lips slightly. “If it meant I was lost with you and never had to share you with anyone else, I’d deliberately get us lost.”
“That doesn’t give me a whole lot of confidence in your sense of direction.”
“But you trust me, right?”
“I…” I pause, dropping my eyes. He pulls back.
“Look at me.” I shake my head. “Kia. Look at me.”
I raise my eyes slowly.
“Now don’t just look at me. See me. You say your lyrics are the words your soul is too afraid to say-”
I swallow. “You remembered.”
“Of course I remembered. It’s important to you, so by default, it’s important to me. Enough.” He repositions us so I’m directly in front of him, both of us on our knees. He places a hand on each of my cheeks, our faces level. “Your lyrics are the words your soul is too afraid to say. My eyes are the window to the heart that’s on fire for you, and only you. Look at me. See me for what I am, and believe me, Kia. Believe it. Really believe it, beautiful, and trust me. Trust that I’ll never let you hurt this way again if I can help it.”
I do. I look at him, and I really see him. I see the little cows lick in his hair he usually tries to hide with hair products. I see the tiny freckles dotting across his nose. I see the indents in his cheeks from his little dimples. I see his eyes, the hazel-brown color with flecks of gold thread throughout the irises. I see everything he’s been trying to tell me since I returned to Harlan Grove.
The hope. The dreams. The wishes. The memories. The pain.
The love.
I shake, my heart beating frantically against my ribs. I rest my hand on top of his on my cheek, and he threads our fingers together, lowering them. He puts my palm flat against his chest, over his heart, and I remember.
“Feel it,” he’d said as we laid under the stars.
“Feel what?”
“This.” He took my hand and put it over his heart. I could feel it pounding under my fingers, trying to break out. In the silence of the night, I could hear it, the erratic, booming beat of an African drum.
“Crazy beats,” I whispered, looking into his eyes.
“That’s because you make me crazy,” he replied. “It beats for you.”
“Crazy beats,” I whisper, my eyes fixed on his.
“It still beats for you, Kia,” he whispers back. “Every day, every beat, it’s all for you.”
I shuffle forward so we’re nose to nose and take a deep breath. “Let’s go.”
“Let’s go?” he repeats, his lips curving into a smile.
I nod, my nose brushing his. “Let’s go. Anywhere. Harlan Grove and all its crap will still be here when we get back, right?” He nods this time. “So let’s go.”
“Anywhere?” he clarifies.
“Anywhere.”
~
Reese stops me before I get in the truck, putting his free hand on the side of my face. I look up at him questioningly. He bends his head and kisses me gently, melding his lips to mine. I reach onto my tiptoes slightly, his lips soft and smooth.
“In,” he demands, moving behind me and settling his hands on my waist. He boosts me in, and I glance at him over my shoulder, smiling slightly.
“I can climb into a truck, Reese,” I repeat the words I’ve said to him so many times.
“I know.” He smirks, shutting the door. He walks around the truck and gets in next to me. “But that doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop helping you. You can wipe your own tears, but if I have my own way, I’ll be there to do that too.”
I tuck my legs up to my chest, wrapping my arms around them. “Reese.”
He backs out of the driveway and shakes his head. “No arguin’, Kia. This weekend, it’s about you. This weekend, out of this town...” He looks at me sideways, turning onto the road that leads to the interstate. “This weekend, you’re mine again. Properly. That might change when we get back here, but I need you, and you need me just as much. Don’t fight it, all right? Just let it happen.”
I don’t blink as I look at him. I don’t move, save for the movement of the car as he turns a corner.
“I never said I was gonna fight it, Reese,” I say quietly, honestly. “I wasn’t gonna fight it at all.”
And that’s the damn honest truth.
~
“Where are we?” I mutter in a sleepy voice. I stretch my legs out, crying out with the ache there.
“Are you all right?” Reese spins in his seat.
“Cramp,” I grumble, massaging my calf. “Your seats aren’t comfy to sleep in.”
“I don’t think they were made for sleepin’, baby.” He laughs.
“Shut up.” I rub my eyes, sitting up straight. “Where are we?”
“My aunt’s beach house in Fort Raine.”
“Won’t she be here?” I raise an eyebrow at him.
“She’s in Mexico with her new toy boy. This house is empty for the next two weeks.”
I nod slowly, looking around at the paneled house. It’s too dark to determine the color of it, but the soft glow from a light on the wraparound porch makes it look a pale blue. Either way, with the perfectly kept flower boxes at the windows, it looks like the perfect place to get away.
Reese opens my door and helps me out before grabbing my guitar and bag. “There should be a key under that flowerpot there.” He nods toward a large pot next to the front door. I climb up and look under it, finding the small gold key and inserting it into the door.
“Wait; we can be here, right?” I say quietly before I turn it.
“Yeah. Aunt May said I could use it before she left.”
I nod again and push the door open. The pristine little house is, well, pristine. There isn’t a speck of dust. Ornaments and trinkets adorn the walls and shelving, and a bird wind chime hangs in the window to my right.
“Come on.” Reese puts the guitar down and tugs on my hand. “I’ll show you around tomorrow. Let’s get some sleep.”
I raise an eyebrow in amusement
“Yes, I mean sleep.” He grins and leads me upstairs. “I used to stay in this room when we came down as kids. It’s seaside themed – I know, cliché as hell – but it has the best view in the house. You probably wanna get changed first, so the bathroom is just across the hall.” He hands me my bag, and I smile as I take it, turning to the door he points at.