Page 40 of Forbidden Lyrics

“Yes.” I step around him and head for the door, desperate to escape my embarrassment, even when I know I’ll be drowning in it for the foreseeable future. “And good luck with those lyrics,” I add over my shoulder, taking the stairs two at a time.

I need to get out of here.

Chapter Eleven

Dove

“Hello?” Reese answers. I’ve wanted to call her since I found out about the accident, but I didn’t want to be a burden and stress her out until she had time to let her situation settle for a bit. Then again, I’m crappy at relationships in general, so…

“Hey, Reese,” I reply, pinning my phone between my shoulder and ear as I get ready for work.

“Hey, Dove.” Her voice is scratchy. Almost hollow. Like she’s so overwhelmed that she can barely tell what’s up and what’s down anymore.

“Hey,” I repeat. “Gibson told me about the accident. How are you? I wanted to stop by the hospital but figured you had enough on your plate right now without having to worry about me, so I figured a call might be better. Are you doing okay? How’s your wrist? How’s Riv?”

“It’s…it’s fine, I guess. Riv is okay. He’s…” She sniffs. “He’s still doped up on pain meds, but he’s coherent enough to know what’s going on, so that’s good. The doctors say it’s going to be a long road to recovery, but…we’ll get through it.”

“I know you will. I already spoke with Ashton and told him to give me your hours. I’m happy to help with whatever I can until you’re ready to come back. Focus on you and Riv right now, okay?”

“Thank you. And yeah. We will.”

“Good. Can I bring you caramel popcorn or anything?”

Her laugh is pathetic at best but still eases the ache in my chest. “I think I’m okay for now. Thank you, though. You seriously are the best. How are you? You said you talked to Gibbs?”

“Yeah.”

“And how’s that going? Any flirty news?”

The girl’s been dying for us to hook up since the moment Gibson and I met. But she doesn’t get it. He isn’t interested, which he made abundantly clear all over again last night.

I frown, refusing to get lost in the memory. “Not really. I thought we might’ve had a moment, but…”

“But what?” she prods.

“It’s nothing. Besides, you have enough on your plate right now without listening to my super anti-climactic drama.”

“Trust me, Dove. I could use the distraction. So, please give me all the anti-climactic details, will ya?”

With a sigh, I flick off the bathroom lights and head to my car without bothering to say goodbye to Maddie. She doesn’t want to talk to me anyway.

“Seriously. There’s not much,” I mutter, my shoes scuffing against the metal stairs as I make my way to the parking lot. “He was freaked out about the accident, so I suggested that he should write a new song to get his emotions out, and he invited me over to listen to him play. We ended up spending most of the night and into the morning together, and I thought he was going to kiss me. But…” I shake my head and unlock the driver’s side door of my car.

“But what?”

“He said I was a good friend.” I emphasize the last word like it’s a curse.

“A good friend? That’s it?”

I nod even though she can’t see me. “Yup. A good friend. That’s it.”

“Well, that sucks.”

I laugh. “Pretty much.”

“But he almost kissed you?”

“I mean… I thought he was going to?” I shake my head and roll my eyes, trying to keep my self-deprecation in check when it’s already been going haywire since I left his house. “But maybe I’m crazy,” I continue. “I’m a sheltered twenty-two-year-old, remember? How am I supposed to know what it feels like before a guy goes in for a kiss?”

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