Page 66 of Charmed, I'm Sure
Lifting her face to mine, I gently swiped my thumb along her cheekbone. “I see you, Magnolia Bellevue. I see your kind and fierce heart. I see your stubborn determination and the love you hold for those around you. You’re so much more than those town clowns give you credit for.”
Before she had a chance to argue, I pressed my lips lightly against hers. When I pulled away, her eyes were softer than I’d ever seen them, and it made my heart skip. “Come on, let’s walk around a bit before we have to head back home.”
A sea of purple and gold flowed around us, the warring music from tailgates blaring around campus as we walked through the throngs ofpeople. None of that mattered, though, not when Magnolia clung to my arm, one hand wrapped in mine as the other gripped my bicep.
We meandered in and out of shops, stopped to grab tea from a food truck, and soaked in the electric atmosphere around us. I hadn’t been home during football season in years, let alone on campus during a home game, and just being around all the hype sent adrenaline coursing through my veins.
A slight tug on my arm had me following Magnolia into a store calledGeaux Time, my eyes drifting appreciatively down her frame before snapping back up.
“Hey, y’all. Welcome in. Let me know if I can help with anything,” the sales clerk hollered.
“Thanks,” Mags replied cheerily as she dragged me across the small store.
I followed like a lost puppy as she wove her way through the racks until a small squeal erupted, and she released my hand. Picking up a baseball cap from a table, she placed it on her head and turned back toward me. “What do you think?”
She struck a pose, her head turning from side to side to give me the full effect, and all I could do was smile. She looked downright edible. How something as simple as a baseball cap could flip a switch and send blood rushing south, I had no idea, but it did, and I sure as hell wasn’t complaining.
Okay, I was complaining a little because, once again, there was nowhere to make good on the promises we’d been dancing around whenever we were together.
Something in my expression must have shifted because she straightened and sauntered the few feet between us, running her hands up my chest. “Like it?”
“You have no idea, sunshine.” My voice came out gravelly even to my own ears.
She pushed up onto her toes and whispered, “How’s house hunting going?”
Fuck me sideways.My eyes rolled back, and I had to suppress a groan as she nipped lightly at my ear, then sank back to her heels.
“I’m going to get it.” She tapped me twice on my pec, then walked toward the checkout.
Escrow was going to be the death of me… or my balls. Probably both. Dragging in a ragged breath, I thought of things that could quell the swelling in my pants.
Colonoscopies.
Severed fingers.
Mom.
It helped—until it didn’t. When I turned around, Magnolia was leaning on the counter, her pert ass sticking out and just begging to be slapped. She was chatting animatedly with the sales clerk as the woman scanned the tag and then cut it off. But before Magnolia could pull her wallet from her bag, I slapped my card down on the counter and leaned down until my lips were next to her ear. “Don’t argue, cher. Let me buy the damn hat.” When she opened her mouth to protest, I whispered so low that only she could hear, “It’s more for me than it is for you anyway.”
My lips brushed against her cheek as I pressed my hips into hers, and her sharp inhale was music to my ears. But apparently, two could play that game because I had to suppress a groan when she pushed her hips back.
The sales clerk—Alyssa, if her tag was correct—didn’t seem to notice the rise in tension. She swiped my card, handed it back to me,then handed Magnolia her hat with a cheerful smile and a chirpy, “Y’all come back and see us.”
Wrapping my arm around Magnolia’s waist, I slipped my hand into her back pocket as we walked toward the door. Once we were outside, I pulled us out of the flow of foot traffic and pried the hat from her grasp.
“Hey!” she protested, reaching out to steal it back.
I placed the cap on her head, then tugged her toward me, my arms encircling her waist, hands slipping back into her pockets as her arms wrapped around my neck. “Ya know, I’m starting to understand the hat appeal.”
She giggled and pushed up on her toes to press her lips against mine. It was short and sweet, but her whole demeanor shifted when we pulled apart. All the lightness that had surrounded her died away like someone snuffing out a candle. Her eyes grew wide, and she jolted out of my grip, pulling the cap further down on her brow.
What the fuck?
“Mags?”
I watched the color drain from her face as her eyes locked onto something across the street. With one word, onename, every wall I’d torn down was built back up.
“Sophie.”
