Page 121 of The Charm of You

With the violin playing and the stars overhead, I spin her under my arm and tug her back to me. We sway to the soft music alongside other people from our old class. Some of them will return to Savannah, Atlanta, and wherever else they’re visiting from.

Most will get in their cars and drive home in under five minutes. Many will tuck their kids into bed with a kiss to their foreheads, and others might even venture over to the Tap for a nightcap.

The last ten years have pulled us all into different directions, but tonight, we’re together under a veil of nostalgic bliss.

“God, I was such a cliché, wasn’t I?” Caroline shakes her head.

“How do you mean?”

Her nostrils blink as she sharply inhales. “The cheer captain dating the football quarterback before dumping him to date the prom king. I was a total cliché.”

I rest my chin on her head, and the silky material of her dress bunches in my grip, tempting me. “You were just a teenage girl,” I whisper.

She slides her hand down my bicep. “Oh, no, you don’t. Don’t go easy on me now. Grumpy Austin from a week ago would never let me off the hook so easily.”

I release a mixture of a laugh and an exhale. The Austin I was before she bulldozed into town was a different person. For the most part, anyway.

Some things—especially habits—don’t change.

I spin her underneath my arched arm once more, and I keep her spinning until her back is flush against my front. From behind her, I wrap my arms around her waist and rest my chin on her bare shoulder. “How about I just tell you how beautiful you are?” I say.

Her breath hitches. “Is that why you’re dancing with me?”

“I’d only dance for you, Homecoming Queen. No one else would’ve gotten me up from a hidden table in the corner, that’s for damn sure.”

What I don’t tell her is that she could make me do anything. If she wanted, all she’d need to do is bat her fucking eyelashes, and I’d fold to her every wish like a piece of paper.

She’s the only woman I’ve ever met who could make me fall in love.

I tighten my arms around her and sway to the music. As I breathe her in, wisps of her hair tickle my nose, and if I had to guess, my heart beats in tune with hers.

The truth is, I might’ve already fallen for her, but I can’t keep her.

chapter

thirty-eight

CAROLINE

In the bathroom, I swipe at the corners of both eyes for any smeared mascara as my heart thunders in my temples.

My skin is still warm from where Austin touched me.

His cologne is still wrapped around me.

And I’m still smiling like a loon because of him.

The scent wafting from the plug-in on the wall gently soothes me as I reach into my clutch to retrieve my lipstick. My knuckle grazes the screen of my phone inside, which lights up with a new message. I lean my hip against the counter and scroll through the six unread messages, plus two notifications of new voice mails.

They’re mostly from Beverly, but one message makes my eyes bulge. It’s from Melissa—my old boss, whose contact information is now saved under “She Beast” in my phone.

With my heart in my throat, I pull up my message thread with Beverly, the first of which urges me to call her, and the last says that Melissa wants to hire me back.

She wants to give me my job back—in New York.

My hands shake as I lift the phone to my ear to listen to the voice mails.

“Babe!” Beverly’s message plays. “You’re not calling me back, but I can’t fucking wait to tell you this. Melissa has finally seen the light and wants you to get your ass back to Five Star. Apparently, some shit went down with her husband a couple of weeks ago. From what I hear around the office rumor mill, he totally had a thing for you, and she was crazy jealous. Fired you to get you away from him, but as it turns out, the sleazeball had three mistresses on the side. Melissa has already filed for divorce.”

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