Page 65 of The Charm of You

Caroline releases a low laugh, but I don’t detect much humor in it. If I could see her more clearly, I imagine I’d be swallowed by her frowning eyes. “I’m sure everyone means well, but playing some part I never agreed to is exhausting. I thought I could outrun it by moving far away, but no such luck.”

I inch toward her again. “I’ve spent most of the last few days insulting you. You’re telling me you like that?”

“I’m funny that way.” Judging by the change in the shadow of her figure, she juts her chin up, and I suppress a chuckle.

Crickets raise the volume of their evening song, and the beat matches the rhythm of the hum in my blood.

As soon as I enter the subtle cloud of her sweet perfume, I cup the curve of her face in my palm, my bear-like hand practically engulfing her delicate cheek. “You live in a land of fairy tales, Princess, but you’re not going to get one from me. You know that, right?”

Caroline tilts her face up, her lips mere centimeters from mine, and whispers, “Fairy tales are overrated.”

“So, we can have fun, then?”

“Fun is exactly what I need.”

The sharp echo of a train horn cuts between us and draws my attention away from her. This is the good part. The whole reason I brought her out here.

I nod toward the bridge. “Come on. There’s something I want to show you.”

She slips her hand into mine and weaves our fingers together like a braided rope. Together, we head for the bridge, and she doesn’t ask questions, nor does she let go of my hand as I take large strides.

The flash of headlights illuminates us for just a moment before disappearing again, as the train rounds the bend in its path. I use the flashlight on my phone to guide us to the middle of the wooden bridge. There’s no need to concern ourselves with cars, since it’s no longer in service. No cars, tractors, or anything else rides over it. But the train tracks that run far below still experience their fair share of traffic.

The headlights from the train come into view again, and they grow bigger and brighter as the beastly locomotive nears us, the freight rattling along the old tracks in a tune all its own.

“Sit here.” I help Caroline lower herself, and she slips her legs over the lip until her feet dangle over the edge of the bridge.

With the help of my phone’s flashlight, I do the same until my heels hit the back of the sturdy structure. My leg rests against hers as the train blasts its horn again, and Caroline shakes against me with laughter.

“What are we doing?” She raises her voice over the incoming train.

“You’ll see. Just wait for it.”

She squeezes my hand again, and my nerves kick spurts of excitement around my body like a soccer ball. My heart races as the train approaches, and Caroline draws her legs up until her knees skim her chin, both ankles crossed.

The train looks like it’s coming right at us, and the sounds blare as if we’re at a monster truck show. I can only hear Caroline’s squeals because I’m sitting so close to her, but also because she’s that loud.

I shield my eyes from the headlights as the train passes underneath the bridge with a violent whoosh. If I were wearing a hat, the force would’ve likely thrown it off my head.

She clings to me as the rush of wind flings her hair back, the strands slapping my cheeks in the process. Caroline digs her fingers into me as if she finds safety and comfort in my arms, and an odd, prideful feeling settles in my chest. I’ve never felt that before. I’ve never been the type women would call safe, but that’s what it feels like with Caroline.

Adrenaline courses through me with each car that crosses onto the other side of the bridge. My body buzzes with enough electricity to power Atlanta as the final car passes, and Caroline trembles into me with howling cheers echoing into the night.

“That was… amazing!” She’s breathless. Her pants slowly replace the remnants of the noises the train leaves behind, which disappear into the distance over my shoulder.

Caroline’s lips find my own in the darkness, her mouth crashing onto mine like a wave onto the beach—wild, yet natural. I’ve only kissed her twice before, but it’s already become so fucking natural.

We move in sync as adrenaline seems to course from me to her and back again. We share the same air. The same desire.

She and I might be opposites, but we clash in the best ways. It somehow just works.

My heart thunders in my throat as she sucks in a sharp breath, followed by a single exhale, during which she blurts, “I was fired from my job last week. No one in town knows, not even my mother. Everyone thinks I’m some big success story, but I’m a fraud. I haven’t said anything because I don’t want them to know I’m a fraud, and part of me loves the compliments, even though I was just complaining about them. But right now, I prefer the compliments over pitiful arm rubs and frowns. How pathetic am I? I’m a chicken. A big, jobless, pathetic chicken.”

Her self-deprecating laugh releases in bursts as she slides away. Then she buries her face in her hands and muffles any other sound bubbling out of her.

I’m stunned.

She believes her self-worth is rooted in a job and the perfect-looking life, but she couldn’t be more wrong. Those things don’t make her Caroline Summers.

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