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Then Collette sat down beside her, and they started another hugging session. Except this time, there was crying involved.
“It’ll get better. You’ll see,” Collette said, holding Cherry tight to her as they both rocked back and forth.
The rest of the conversation was fairly inaudible, I didn’t understand much.
But they did.
Those two were tight.
Once their crying time was over, Collette rubbed her fingers underneath her eyes and said she had to check on the store.
After she left, I said, “Are you okay?”
Cherry nodded her head and took a few more deep breaths. “Sorry about that. Chicks get emo from time to time.” Her voice was shaky and quiet, and I wanted nothing more than to fix whatever was wrong in her world.
It wasn’t just a wish or a desire—it was a fierce need.
I made a deal with myself to get to the bottom of whatever crap Cherry had in her life and remove it as soon as damn well possible. “It sounded like a lot more than that. And we’re going to talk about it when you’re ready.”
Her eyes widened and she shook her head. “No, it’s just been a long time since we’ve seen each other. Don’t read into it, Nick,” even as she said that a few more tears fell down her cheeks.
Instantly, my thumbs were there to swipe them off her face. “You,” I said, tipping her chin up with my index finger, “and I are going to discuss this later.” My eyes stared intently into hers, letting her know I was serious.
Again, her head moved back and forth. “No, there’s nothing wrong, really.” Her eyes pleaded up at me, making her look like an injured kitten.
It broke my fucking heart.
I leaned down, kissed her lips, and whispered, “Later.”
Before we left,Collette informed us that there was an eighties, Brat Pack marathon starting soon at their favorite retro cinema around the corner.
Of course, there was.
By the way Cherry jumped up and down and clapped her hands, I assumed that meant we were headed there next. “Can we go?” she asked, spinning around to me with the cutest look of anticipation on her face.
“Anything you want,” I said, then they both started screaming in high pitched voices.
We left the store, and the screaming, and dropped off her haul of books with Langcaster. Cherry said we could just as easily walk to the theater as drive, so I dismissed Langcaster, grabbed Cherry’s hand, and took off in the direction she said.
“I haven’t been out to a movie in a long time,” I told her as I slipped my arm around her shoulders. An odd sense of excitement filled me right at that moment.
And it wasn’t because I’d missed sitting in crowded, noisy theatres.
“You’ll love it. And their popcorn is the best in the city,” she said, gazing up at me with happy eyes.
“Hmm, it seems like everything around here is the best in the city. Coffee, and now popcorn,” I said in a teasing tone.
Her head fell back momentarily. “Tell me that coffee was not the best you’ve ever had!”
I chuckled and pulled her closer to me. “It was by far the best coffee I’ve ever tasted in this city. I’ll give you that.”
Her eyebrows raised and she said, “See? Just wait until you taste the popcorn.”
“What I want to taste is you,” I said into her ear.
I felt her body loosen and she peered up at me and spoke in a low voice, “Do you—want to go back home?”
The thought of taking her back to my bed was definitely enticing.
