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“Oh look, condoms!” she announces, and I know for a fact she’s talking extra loud for my benefit. She’s goading me. “You needed more. Grab a packet. Oh wait, they only have extra-large. They’ll be way too big for you. Never mind.”
Eyes darting madly around at the other customers who are starting to pay us attention; I grab Brinley’s hand in mine, refusing to let go, despite her attempts at squirming out of my tight grip.
As we head for the cashier, a little boy who looks to be about eight years old stops raking through the discount candy bin near the front doors and he looks up at me.
His mouth falls open and his eyes grow really wide. I’ve seen that look a million times before and I’m well aware of what’s about to go down.
Yanking my baseball cap even lower over my hair doesn’t help. The little boy leaves the candy behind, and his mother reaches for him, but he’s already figured out who it is under the lame-ass disguise and his entire face breaks out into an enormous smile.
“Are you Reed Devlin?” His voice is adorable. I’m not great with fans, but I get a kick out of talking to kids. “My daddy loves you, and I do too.”
I squat down to his level, tapping him gently on the nose with my finger. “Yeah, buddy. I am. But do me a favor and don’t tell anyone else you saw me here, okay?”
He nods.
“It can just be our little secret, yeah?”
“I can keep secrets. I’m good at keeping secrets.”
His mother smiles awkwardly at me, looking star-struck and a little confused to be honest. She pulls a piece of paper from her purse, as well as a pen, and holds them out toward me.
“Any chance we could get an autograph? Cooper’s right, my husband is a huge fan, well, actually we all are, but my husband has seen you play live a dozen different times. He’s not going to believe me when I tell him we met you.”
“Of course,” I smile at her, letting go of Brinley’s hand. I sign my name and ask the little boy what his favorite song is. He tells me he can’t remember the name of it, but it’s the one where I ride the Harley Davidson on the road near the beach. I laugh and tell him how much fun it was to make that video clip. Then I stand and shake his hand. “It was nice to meet you, Cooper. Be good to your mom, okay?”
He nods, and his mother thanks me profusely, and I see Brinley smile politely at her as we walk away.
“Holy shit,” she says, as we start unloading the mountain of snacks onto the counter for the cashier to ring up. “You just made that kid’s day.”
I turn, catching Brinley staring at me with moist eyes. “Hardly. Are you crying?”
“No.”
“What’s with the tears then?”
“They’re not tears.”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Like what?”
“You’re looking at me weird. Quit it.”
“That was just really sweet, and very cool. That little boy is going to remember this night forever. And you got to make that happen for him. It’s kind of a big deal.”
“I doubt he’s going to remember it forever.” The cashier watches me closely as she tells me the total and I swipe my credit card through the machine. “Whatever. Come on. Let’s go,” I say, thanking her, and then head out the door to the parking lot.
Brinley climbs into the Jeep beside me like she’s done it a hundred times before, just all natural-like, and I swivel in my seat to buckle up. “You’re looking at me weird again, Tink.”
“Get over yourself.”
I point my finger at her as she settles into the plush leather interior. “I’m not crazy, I saw that. It was most definitely a look. You got something wrong with your eyes, Tink? Might want to see a doctor about it. I know a good ophthalmologist.”
She gives me a one-shoulder-shrug and pulls her knees up beneath her, looking out the window as I pull out of the parking lot. She looks content as we drive the streets, and I know this because I keep sneaking looks at her as we make the short trip back to her place.
Brinley is a temptation. But I’m not sure I’m ready to take a bite just yet.
I’m way too close to the flame. And if I’m not careful, I’m the one who is going to get burned. I have a plan set in place, and my fumbling fucked up emotions with this girl aren’t going to get in the way of that plan.
