Page 19 of Dare to Hold
I fold my arms, playing along. “And what exactly does someone who sings at a church look like?”
“Well,” she says, waving her hand in front of me, “not like this.” Her voice softens, but her eyes are dancing. “Not all tall and broody in black, with tattoos down both arms and that whole ‘mysterious musician’ vibe going on.”
I lean in slightly, grinning. “Says who?”
She opens her mouth, then closes it again like she’s not sure how to respond.
I flash a wink. “Jesus loves everybody, Ivy.”
This time, she laughs with me.
Then, there’s a quiet moment between us. She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, still smiling.
“So…” I say casually, “since you live here, you should come check it out sometime. My church.”
Her brows lift. “Oh, um. I’ve never really, been to church before.”
“Then you’re overdue,” I say, my tone light.
“I don’t know what to expect.” Her eyes dip to her coffee.
“You can expect melodies that feel like a hugyou didn’t know you needed, a message that just might surprise you, and if you stick around after…lunch with me.”
Her cheeks flush, and she looks away again, like she’s trying not to smile too hard. “I bet they don’t include that last part in the announcements.”
“No,” I say softly, “that part’s just for you.”
Her eyes meet mine and the café noise fades into the background.
And I can tell, she’s thinking about saying yes.
Chapter 5
Ivy
Gray is sitting across from me. In my coffee shop. The one I go to almost every freaking day. And he lives in the same city I do. All this time, he’s been so close.
The past three months have been devastating.
Not in some dramatic, world-ending way. But in a quiet, aching kind of way. Like a piece of me got left behind in that New Orleans coffee shop. Like no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. His voice. That slow, amused smile. The way his hand fit perfectly in mine, even if it was just for a dare.
I told myself it was just a moment. But it stuck with me. He stuck with me.
And now, he’s here. Real. Solid. Looking at me like he remembers it all too.
His voice cuts through my internal spiral. “What are you thinking, Ivy?”
I blink, snapping back to the present. “That I can’t believe this is real.”
He smiles gently. “It is.”
I hesitate, then ask the question that’s been lingering atthe back of my mind since he first sat down. “You’re not going to just disappear again, are you?”
He sits back, the smile softening, his thumb brushing along the edge of his coffee cup like he needs something to do with his hands. “I didn’t disappear, Ivy. You went back home. I went back home. Turns out, home was the same place.”
I press my lips together, absorbing that. “Feels like the universe has a sense of humor.”
One corner of his mouth lifts, but his gaze drops to the table for a beat before meeting mine again. “Or maybe God’s just a fan of plot twists.”
