Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
“I know. You don’t like anything that sounds too Tennessee.”
He nodded once, shifting in his seat. “This song isn’t half bad, though. I’ll give you that. For a Dolly Parton song.”
I sang along to the second verse, not giving a damn. “You better shut your mouth,” I drawled at Ori, laying it on thick. “You’re the only person from Tennessee who would dare say a bad word about Dolly. Dance with me.”
Ori made a face. “I’m not dancing to country music and you know it.”
“Dance with me,” I said again, holding out my hand.
3
ORI
Old flames? Tennessee feels more like an old inferno, if you ask me, Dolly.
“Hell, no,” I said to Finn’s outstretched hand. Even though he was always kind of sweet when he was buzzed, I wasn’t stepping foot anywhere near that dance floor.
“C’mon,” he said confidently. He gave me the come here motion with his fingers.
I was enjoying denying him. “I’m not dancing to any song this old unless I’m at a club and they play Abba.”
Finn stared at me with a look I hadn’t seen from him in years.
I used to call it The Eyes. Sometimes when he was drinking, Finn seemed to think that if he just looked at me a certain way, I would do what he asked. He was used to getting what he wanted. Sometimes it worked on me, but tonight, it wasn’t going to.
“You’re nervous,” Finn said with full confidence.
“Shut up.” I turned away and took a sip of my margarita.
“I know you’re nervous,” he told me. “Come on.”
“Nervous definitely ain’t the word for it,” I said.
A tiny smile appeared on Finn’s face. “Your drawl’s coming back out. That only happens when you’re really tired, or you’re fucking nervous.”
Something flared inside me, and I bit the inside of my cheek.
I’d ironed out any trace of a southern accent from my voice by high school, but Finn had made it his mission to catch any hint of it ever since then.
He was still full of shit about me being nervous, though.
“Well, I am tired,” I said. “Just got done with a pretty long road trip, if you don’t remember.”
Finn finally waved me off, shaking his head. “You’re the one missing out if you don’t dance with me, glitter boy.”
I polished off the rest of my margarita and stood up to head to the bathroom. When I walked toward the narrow hallway, I realized Finn had followed me. He reached for my arm, trying to pull me toward the dance floor.
He was being gentle, but I still gave him a warning look. “Wanna bet?” I said.
Something shifted in his eyes.
That phrase meant something to us. We always used to say it whenever things started to escalate between the two of us back in school. Sometimes it just led to something simple, like an arm wrestle or a snowball fight, but other times, it could end with us wrestling each other to the ground, punching each other, or ripping each other to shreds with the best insults a high schooler could muster.
“Sure do,” Finn said, holding my gaze. “Thought you knew you couldn’t take me anymore.”
“I’m not afraid of you, Finn,” I said.
Something twinkled in his eyes. “You wanna bet?”
There it was. His ego, finally coming out to play.
I didn’t hesitate.
In an instant, I gripped my hand around his forearm and pulled him forward, twisting him until his back was to the wall.
My heart was pounding already. Adrenaline surged through me, pushing away the stressed-out energy that had built up since I’d entered Tennessee.
I kept him shoved up against the wall, my breath quickening slightly, the smell of beer coming through the air.
It had been a long time since I’d been physical like this with him. I’d caught him off-guard, but I was still aware that he could probably take me, anytime he wanted.
Finn’s look of shock quickly transformed into a hard stare. He had some of the prettiest, kindest eyes I’d ever seen, but even through that kindness, he knew how to give someone a death glare.
I knew he was going to retaliate a split second before it happened. He grabbed me by the front of my jacket and spun me around, easily pinning me up against the wall a whole lot more gracefully than I’d done it to him.
Suddenly his forearm was across my chest, like a big, heavy bar. My shoulder had connected with the wood on the wall, hitting my bone, and it throbbed now.
I really fucking liked that feeling.
I wanted to sock him in his face, yes.
I wanted to toy with him as much as humanly possible.
But finally we were doing more than just talking.
He kept me stuck against the wall. “You know you can’t fight me,” he threatened me in a low voice, but his tone was still completely calm. “Couldn’t fight back in high school, and you sure as fuck can’t fight me now.”