Chapters (38)
- one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- eleven
- twelve
- thirteen
- fourteen
- fifteen
- sixteen
- seventeen
- eighteen
- nineteen
- twenty
- twenty-one
- twenty-two
- twenty-three
- twenty-four
- twenty-five
- twenty-six
- twenty-seven
- twenty-eight
- twenty-nine
- thirty
- thirty-one
- thirty-two
- thirty-three
- thirty-four
- thirty-five
- thirty-six
- thirty-seven
- epilogue
Violet touched his cheek, surprised to find it damp with tears. She turned his face to hers with a finger. “Then kiss me.”
Sam swept Violet’s hair back, tracing her jawline with his thumbs. His hands grasped the back of her head and tilted it to the stars. He leaned his forehead to hers and paused, breathing deeply. Then he pressed his lips to hers, offering nothing but a light, slow, wet caress of her mouth. He held her head in place a few more seconds and sucked her bottom lip gently before releasing her to fall back on his arm. He leaned away to look into her eyes and whispered, “Well?”
Violet could not answer. The tiny electric tingles were now racing all through her body. She scrambled to her knees and threw her arms around his neck, offering the kiss Sam Davidson had been imagining for as long as he could remember, the one from her heart and soul.
Minutes later, when they paused for breath, Sam asked, “Am I dreaming?”
“Yes, you are. So am I. Don’t wake me up.”
“Will you go with me to Atlanta?”
“Only if you let me kiss you again sometime.” Violet nuzzled his neck and inhaled deeply behind Sam’s left ear. He smelled like a curious mixture of soap and of manly sweat—like the place she wanted to be forever. Like home was in Sam Davidson’s strong arms.
“Hey,” Sam whispered. “We have to go back and rejoin the party.”
“I know, but I want to stay right here.” Violet was dizzy with wine and her newfound feelings for Sam. She knew they had to walk into Jerry’s living room without looking like they’d discovered a pot of gold and three unicorns in the back yard. She smiled to herself and kissed Sam’s forehead lightly. The moonlight reflected traces of her pink lipstick there and on his mouth, so she swiped at them the best she could and laughed. “Let’s go,” she said, standing and extending her hand to him. “I’ll tell Hugh I’m not feeling well and ask him to drive me home.”
Sam considered this for only a second. “No,” he said. “I know Hugh Parker too well to allow that. I’ll drive you and Deborah. We’ll drop her off first.”
Violet’s stomach lurched, offering a taste of wine and guilt.
nine
RONNI
As soon as Halle was crunching her food I called Rick from my bed/office, all messy sheets, cracker crumbs, legal pads and laptop. I glanced at the drugstore foundation and mascara streaks on the pillowcases, vowing once again to improve my nighttime facial routine and devotion to household laundry.
“Hey,” he answered. “Took you long enough.”