Page 30 of Whiskey Reveals

Chapter 15

Fox probably shouldn’t have beennervous to show Melody around town, considering they had already slept together and had spent time together, but he was still nervous as hell. After he had told his brothers the news, Kenzie and Ainsley had shown up soon after, demanding to know what had the three Collins brothers so on edge. And because Dare didn’t want to hide things from his woman, and Loch had a strange relationship with his best friend, Fox didn’t bother keeping secrets.

The two of them had looked shocked for a moment and then had squealed before hugging him. Then they had left the three guys alone because they wanted to talk to Melody. Sure, it had been his idea because he didn’t want Melody to be alone while family surrounded him, but the girls had made it sound as if it was their idea, as well. He didn’t mind because while Melody had her grandmother, Fox had so many more people in his life. And that meant there were many more shoulders he could lean on. And while he wanted to be a shoulder Melody could lean on, he had a feeling that they’d both needed space the night before. At least she might have needed space from him. He could be wrong, but by sending the girls over there, at least he’d known she wasn’t alone.

And now, Melody was on her way over to his office so they could take a late lunch/early dinner together and so he could show her around town. She’d been living in Whiskey for a little bit now and had visited before, but she had said that she didn’t know some of the little histories that came with each block and building. She might know the tourist’s version of the bootlegging stories, but there was so much more to Whiskey than its namesake.

The grand opening of her dance studio was soon, and he knew she was beyond nervous and frazzled. He had offered to help, and other than putting a notice in his paper that she had paid for, that was all she had allowed him to do until the day of. She planned to have a party to celebrate all of the new students and the building itself. And figured that would be a great time for everyone to get to know her as well as for her to check out who would be entering her classrooms. Fox would be there to be her errand boy, and he didn’t mind. Loch had also offered, even though he was also going as the father of one of the students. Fox had a feeling his entire family would show up and make sure Melody wasn’t alone for even a moment. She had no idea what she had signed on for when she slept with him, but neither had he. He hadn’t known he would find the most interesting, intelligent, sexy woman he could’ve ever hoped for. And he was glad that they would have this afternoon to get to know each other.

And that meant he needed to make sure that she enjoyed herself. Because if he made the town sound like a dull place today, she might think that he was dull and never want to see him again. Hell, he sounded as if he were back in high school again, worried about what the girls thought about him and his skinny limbs. He might’ve filled out in the muscle department, but apparently, the nerves department hadn’t changed much.

Melody had said that she would meet him in front of the office so she wouldn’t bother him at work, and since it was time, Fox packed up his things and headed out past his writers’ desks. Nancy looked up, narrowed her eyes, then went back to work. He barely resisted rolling his eyes at her. They would have to figure out a way to work together, especially if she continued to act as if she could write anything she wanted and however long she wanted it. Sometimes, he really hated the whole being a boss thing.

He had a feeling Nancy wouldn’t be staying at the paper much longer. He didn’t plan to fire her because she did damn good work. But he figured she wouldn’t stay because the small town just wasn’t enough for her. She’d end up moving to a bigger paper with bigger news eventually, and that was just fine with him. Whiskey wasn’t for everyone—the town or the drink.

Melody was standing on the sidewalk right outside his building when he walked out. She wore leggings, ballet flats, and this tunic thing that cinched in at her waist and showcased her figure. He’d always known she was sexy. Had felt her sweet curves beneath his hands, but right then, he couldn’t help but think she was even sexier. And, yeah, he couldn’t stop his gaze from darting to her stomach, nor could he ignore the warmth filling him. Yeah, he was nervous and scared, but he was also damn excited. They were going to have a baby. He loved kids. And at this point in his life, he’d thought he would’ve had kids of his own by now. The fact that Melody was going to have his child made him feel like a Neanderthal, wanting to pound his chest and say that, yes, he had done that. And that was why he was never, ever going to tell Melody that train of thought.

“Hey there. I’m glad you came.”

Melody turned at the sound of his voice, her eyes brightening. He was glad they did that rather than having her shrink away in fear or whatever. He was seriously nervous about this day, and he just hoped that he didn’t screw it all up.

“I’m glad I came, too. I want to know more about the town since I’m planning to stay here for a good while. And I could use a walk. I’ve been inside that studio for so long now, that I think I’ve paced every single step. It’s pretty much done, and I’m so nervous for tomorrow.” She rested her hand on her stomach, and his gaze couldn’t pull away. He wanted to put his hand over hers, but he had a feeling that neither of them was ready for that. Or maybe they were and he was just scared.

“I’ve seen the place, remember? It looks great, and you’re going to do great.”

“You say that, but now that I’m pregnant, it changes things.”

He held back a wince, knowing that being a dance instructor while pregnant probably wasn’t the easiest thing to do. But then again, he didn’t actually know the ins and outs of her days—that was something he wanted to change.

“We’ll figure it out. Just remember, you’re not alone in this. We’re the ones having this baby. So we’re the ones who will make the plans. But first, let me show you Whiskey. Maybe when you get to know the town, and tomorrow when the town gets to know you even more, you can feel a little more settled. Because, yeah, I’m just as nervous as you are about what’s going to happen in the next few months, but I think knowing what’s around you and maybe having that touchstone will help. Or I’m just blowing smoke up your ass and trying to think of a way for us to go on a date in the middle the day since we both have other things to do.”

That made Melody laugh, and he was glad for it. “It’s not really the middle the day. You only took the last hour off work, and at this point, I think it’ll probably count as lunch. I’m sorry we had to push it back a couple hours, but I was in the groove at the studio and didn’t want to break it. You know?”

“Actually, I don’t. I don’t really groove.”

“You grooved that night. And…I can’t believe I actually just said that out loud. It’s not like we're really going to ignore what happened, and we’re both trying to figure out if we want to work together as a couple or friends or co-parents or whatever and I’m freaking myself out. But yeah, you had moves, good moves.”

If Fox were a peacock, he would have preened and spread his feathers at that point. Why that image popped into his head, he didn’t know.

“You had pretty good moves yourself, Melody. Just saying.” And because he remembered the moves, his cock pressed into the zipper of his jeans, and he had to clear his throat. Her gaze traveled down his body and landed on where his visible erection strained against the denim. There was no hiding it, and even though he should have been embarrassed, he wasn’t. Because Melody was the one who had done that to him. He could see the sharp pebbles of her nipples pressing against her shirt, and he knew that he wasn’t the only one turned on.

He swallowed hard, and then held out his hand, determined not to act the fool and kiss her right there on the sidewalk where anyone could see. He’d promised her a view of the town, and that’s what she’d get.

And he’d do his best to learn to walk with a hard-on from hell.

As he’d been in this situation a few times now thanks to Melody, he learned quickly.

“Ready to see Whiskey?” He hoped his voice sounded calm and not like he wanted to jump her. When she took a deep breath and took his hand, he had a feeling the walk would end up a different form of torture for both of them.

“Sounds good to me. Are there ghost stories? I love ghost stories.”

“There’s a few,” he said as they made their way down the street so they were on Main. “Though I think the most famous one is where they thought Ms. Pearl was the lady in white in the attic.”

Melody’s eyes widened, and she laughed, the sound filling him, drawing him near. “That sounds like her. She probably put on the getup just to get a rise out of people.”

“And since I might have reminded her of the story when we were talking, she said she might do it again.” He gave her a pained grimace, but she laughed.

“She’ll probably rope me into it, and I’ll be in another window in the attic dressed all in white so I can scare the children, too.”

---