Page 34 of Anders and the Girl Worth Fighting For
“I’m sorry,” I said with a laugh, startled by the revelation. “What?”
“My school was very poor and couldn’t afford even basic recorders for the students’ music class. So the music teacher made little keyboards out of file folders and black and white paper and taught us about music with them. Then we had to compose a piece of music and the music teacher would play it for us.” He said all this with a smile. “She then judged them and the winner got to have their music played by the band during a school assembly.”
The story enraptured me. It was such a simple and silly thing. Exactly what I needed right now. “Who won?” I couldn’t help but ask.
He shot me that smug smile I loved. “I did,” he boasted.
This startled a laugh out of me. “You have musical talent?” I asked.
“Not even a little bit,” he said through his own smile. “Remember how I said we composed it from a file folder? I literally just wrote a pattern on a piece of paper with no idea what it would sound like when it was done. I just thought it looked cool.”
“Ah, that makes more sense,” I said, still smiling. I had turned in my seat toward him during his story and I couldn’t look away from him. Dark stubble outlined his strong jaw and the low sun lit up his whiskey-colored eyes. “You aren’t good at music, just pattern recognition.”
He glanced over at me. “Exactly.”
“I bet that came in handy with your work,” I said. My laughter had died down, and in its wake relaxation andhappiness settled in me, matching the golden glow of early evening.
“Very much so.”
The sun set just as we made it to Hilton Head and the creek was lit up with golden hues. I hadn’t had many opportunities to come out to the island and I’m glad that Anders suggested it for our first excursion out of the safe house. Maybe I could talk him into a walk on the beach after dinner.
Chapter Sixteen
the hostess sat us on the deck overlooking the harbor. It’s the wrong side of the island to watch the sunset, but the clouds in the sky were lit up pink and orange against the blue backdrop of the water. As stunning as that view was, I couldn’t take my eyes off Grace. She opted for the steak over the seafood and dug into it like she was back from deployment and eating actual food again. I didn’t know watching someone eat could be so entertaining.
“What?” she asked once she swallowed another bite of juicy red steak.
“I was just thinking I should have ordered the steak,” I quipped. My salmon sat mostly untouched on my plate.
“Want a bite?” She held up her fork with a piece of the rib cap on it. The best part.
“Yes,” I said with conviction before I even thought the word. I leaned forward and ate the piece directly off her fork. It was lightly salted and buttery and it melted in my mouth when I bit into it. I definitely should have ordered the steak.
Her eyes were wide and her lips slightly parted as she watched me chew my bite. Maybe they slipped some aphrodisiac into the garlic butter that was melting on top when they brought it out.
“I was thinking perhaps a walk on the beach after we eat,”she blurted. I didn’t know if she wanted to distract herself or get me alone. I knew which one I preferred.
“The beach sounds nice,” I said, leaning back in my chair. I still hadn’t touched my salmon. After that steak, I wasn’t sure I could enjoy it.
Her cheeks turned pink at the look I gave her. I crossed my arms and watched as she traced the path of them from one shoulder to the other. It wasn’t the first time I caught her looking, and I was more than happy to provide her a show.
“How’s your dinner?” The waitress came up and asked, interrupting whatever was happening between us.
“What are your dessert options?” Grace asked, turning her head to the waitress and breaking eye contact with me.
“Sorry, we don’t have a dessert menu. There are several bakeries and ice cream shops on the island, though.” The waitress’ words were kind enough, but something in her tone had Grace shrinking in on herself.
“Oh. Ok. Thank you,” she said.
“I think we’re done here. Can we get the check?” I interjected. I wanted Grace’s light back. We are going to find dessert.
“Certainly.” The waitress practically purred when she spoke to me. I didn’t bother looking at her and kept my eyes on Grace instead.
She was quiet as we walked out of the restaurant. I racked my brain trying to remember the name of a place Duke used to talk about. Something about a burned-down church and a lighthouse.
“I might know of a place we can go walk with some nice desserts. Let me see if Duke can get us in,” I said when we got to the car.
“Oh, we don’t need dessert.”
