Page 15 of Dance in the Light
The tears kept rolling until she struggled to stay upright. I carried her to my truck, setting her down on my tailgate. Her legs wrapped around my waist and she continued to cry into my chest.
“Now I can’t make it up to him. He’s gone, Ryan. What did I do?”
“Regrets will eat away at you. He wouldn’t have wanted that. I think both your folks would only want to see you happy. Find what makes you happy.”
“Being here with you right now makes me happy,” she whispered through sniffles, finally calming down. “Oh God, I needed that cry. Now I’m a mess.”
“Stay here.” In my truck, I rooted around in my daddy diaper bag, and returned with a package of wet wipes. “Here yougo. Being a dad comes with some obvious perks. I’m always prepared for anything.”
She laughed and cried some more. And finally, when she’d recovered and cleaned up, an old but good song came on the radio.
“Every time I hear this song, I think of you. But here you are, in the flesh. Come on. Dance with me, Cynthia.”
By Bessie’s headlights, on the top of our hill, we swayed to the music while I hummed the tune.
We can dance to a song, under the moon,
My lips press to yours, swaying to the tune.
The last time we danced in the light like this, in each other’s arms, was prom night, but I refused to think this night would end how that night did.
When the song was over, her face tilted up to mine, and her green eyes dazzled despite the dark. Her mane of red hair, finally dried and wavy, added to the wild mystic of Cynthia. It was up to me to tame her heart.
Other than holding my baby girl the day she was born, things never felt more right than this moment.
“There’s something you should know.” I brushed her lips with mine. “I could never give my heart to anyone else all these years, because I was still stuck in this field, slow dancing to the lights of Bessie with my favorite girl in my arms.”
I kissed her lips, again and again, and in case she still needed convincing, I kissed her more. Breathless in my arms, I carriedmy girl to the back of my truck again. I laid down some blankets, then joined her there, hovering over her.
Her hand reached up, fingering my hair. “If we do this, Ryan, everything will change between us.”
“That’s the one thing I’m counting on,” I whispered on her lips before taking them and claiming them once and for all.
ELEVEN
MAKING LOVE
RYAN
This was exactly how I’d imagined our first time together. Hell, on prom night, I was ready to pop our cherries together in the back of Bessie. I’d had a bottle of champagne Kevin Kerrigan bought for me, a blow up mattress in the back, blankets, and of course a million stars over our heads.
That night didn’t turn out like I’d planned. But this one would.
I turned and brought her on top of me. “Starlight.”
Her kissing along my jawline paused. “What?”
“How about Starlight for your nickname?”
Her laughter rang out. “No. Baby is fine, or just Cynthia. You’re the only one who calls me that. You do know it’s not my name, right? Cindy Anne is on my birth certificate.”
“Huh? And here I thought I knew everything about you.”
“Well, you don’t,” she returned to planting kisses along my jaw. “So workharderto learn more.”
“Is this hard enough for you?” I tightened my grip on her hips and ground my cock into her because I’d thought of nothing else for far too long. In my truck bed, under the stars, on our hill, we’d finally make dreams come true.
“Mm. Yes, Ryan.”
