She turned to face him, eyes ripe with sincerity. “I think you bring something out of me too.” As they gazed at each other, lost in the headiness of the moment, it felt like theirs alone. She pulled his face to hers, kissing him like it was.
The house music died down, and Kadidja took the stage. Her natural curls were styled into a fierce crown. She wore a fringed, light pink leather jacket, matching dress shirt, and black slacks. Adjusting her acoustic guitar, she motored into a bluegrass-tinged opening chord.
Brinton’s eyes widened as she took in the song, ascorching manifesto about breaking free from the confines of oppression in an anti-Black world. She squeezed Jamie’s bicep. He kissed her cheek. Watching Brinton experience his lifeblood—the bright lights, stripped-down emotion, and excitement of discovering a new artist—was as satisfying as playing his favorite six-string.
In between songs, she nudged his shoulder. “I almost feel bad for giving you a hard time about country music when we met.”
“Almost?”
“All right, I feel bad! I’m eating my words. There’s more to it than whiskey and pickup trucks. A lot more. Thank you.”
He rubbed her back, his heart full. “Don’t thank me yet. Our night’s only beginning.”
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
They parked on a gently sloped hill overlooking a field dotted with a kaleidoscope of wildflowers. In comparison, it made even the bucolic sights fromThe Sound of Musiclook like a Home Depot garden department.
“This is straight out of a fairytale,” Brinton said, unable to believe what felt like a mirage. “You really are a prince.”
He smirked that sexy-ass smirk. “Since I was little, I’d come here when I needed a break from…the king’s reign.”
Jamie toted the blankets and wicker picnic basket from the truck bed and set them on a low, long table beneath a sugar maple tree. “When my dad first purchased the land, he took my mom here. She loved it too.”
He placed electric lanterns strategically around the table, flicking them on as he went. “Every so often, he talks about selling it. But I don’t think he’s got the heart.”
“Hell of a date night spot, Crawford,” she said, spreading a pillowy quilt on his side of the table.
This was indisputable: he had dated many, many women, meaning that while she’d never experienced this brand ofaffection, she accepted that there were very few firsts left for him.
He pulled a Michelin Star–worthy charcuterie plate from the picnic basket. “Well, I wouldn’t know. Never brought anybody up here before.”
“Oh,” she whispered, attempting to sound casual as her stomach tumbled to her ankles.
“Oh.” He’d done all of this forher.
“It’s gorgeous,” she added. “I thought—well, I assumed…”
He winked at her. “I know what you assumed.”
Brinton knelt next to him at the table. “I…don’t know what to say.”
She was so grateful that her heart felt too big for her chest. Her adoration surged at hurricane strength. No man had ever made her feel soacknowledged, andrare. He must have seen it on her face, but he didn’t seek validation or make it about himself.
Instead, he held a wine bottle in each hand, eyes glinting with anticipation. “How about we start here: You in the mood for red or white?”
Unsurprisingly, they were in the mood for more than wine.
They enjoyed one exceptional glass of Sancerre before she yanked him on top of her. They kissed fervently, if not sloppily. Greedy hands over needy, sun-warmed skin. Clinking teeth and hushed laughter until the promise of eye-crossing bliss sambaed alongside earthy-sweet notes of summer grass.
The sky was an arresting swirl of fuchsia, streaked with the deep purple of impending nightfall. Stars poked through stretched cotton wisps of clouds.
Brinton’s phone pinged. Immediately, her senses dulled.
“You wanna get that?” Jamie asked, kissing the shallows of her throat and stroking her back. She didn’t answer.
Without opening it, there was no way to know for sure, but the email notification had to be from Rich. The thought of it was a Doc Martens boot on her trachea. While Jamie’s date had been a sedative for her nerves, she couldn’t avoid Rich forever.
Yet, Jamie was there with her. In such a short time, he made her feel less alone. He was somebody she could confide in. She needed that now more than ever.
