Page 99 of Pink and Country

My lips found hers, soothing them. “No pressure here, okay?” April nodded again, her eyes closed this time. “You’ll tell me when you’re ready. I met the Bensons a few times over the years. They’ve always been nice to me. A bit stuck up, but nice. They often want me to perform at their fundraisers.”

“They’re good people, but they have a hard time dealing with emotions. They keep a stiff upper lip no matter what and refuse to show any weaknesses. For a while, they’d been the parents I never had. I spent my holidays at their house. We talked on the phone, made plans, had game nights. When Travis left, they blamed me and pushed me away like I’d meant nothing to them. Now they want to make up for the lost time. Like I said, it’s complicated.”

April deepened our kiss, ending the discussion. The pain I already noticed in her eyes a few times flashed again. She smiled and leaned against my shoulder.

With our fingers laced, we ambled toward the southern end of the island. April jumped on my back, and I carried her, piggyback-style, across the Brooklyn Bridge, her breath tickling the back of my neck. Every now and then, April leaned closer to drop a kiss on my cheek.

Ed and Taylor followed us close behind. Up to now, they did a great job being invisible. Well, almost, considering they’re both taller than me.

We were halfway through the landmark bridge when April started firing questions at them.

“What’s your last name, Taylor?”

“Ed, is your name Edward or Edison?”

“Have any of you ever seen a show on Broadway?”

April tried to include the two professional-football-player lookalikes in our conversation. Not breaking character, Taylor and Ed kept a straight face. Out and about, they always acted all business. Off the clock, they were both two of my best friends.

“I’ll pierce their armor, you’ll see,” April whispered in my ear, a whiff of her lavender perfume going straight to my brain—she even smelled amazing. She loved the challenge, and I loved how much she hated the idea of my security guys being left apart when tailing us.

A giant grin curled my lips, and I shook my head. “Good luck with that. You’ll need it.” Once we reached the other shore, we decided to cross the bridge again. The sun was bright today, and I relished the warmth on my face. April was still perched on my back. “I want to do dirty things to you. Again. Can we go now?”

April nibbed at my earlobe. “Not yet. Our tourist day isn’t over.” I let out a growl and felt the vibration of Pixie’s laugher through my back.

“Okay, guys, I bought each of you a classic I love NY shirt,” April said as she exited a store on Canal Street. “It’s our first trip together, and you all need to put it on. It’s tradition.”

“Says who?” I asked.

“Me.”

The guys and I exchanged a glance, and I shrugged. Ed winced. And Taylor shook his head, part-amused, part-scared. I burst out laughing as my bodyguards put on their shirts over their jackets. Just to witness the smile on April’s face was worth indulging in her game.

“Ed, can you please take our picture?” I asked, lifting my girl in my arms, honeymoon-style.

“I want one with the four of us too,” April said, stopping a jogger, a brunette in neon-pink spandex. “Would you be nice enough to take a picture of us, please?”

“Wow, I can’t believe you got the guys to agree to all of this,” I exclaimed as I dropped her back to her feet. April flashed me a ten-thousand-buck grin.

“I can be pretty convincing when I need to. Don’t forget I’m a woman.” How could I forget? “You’re all guys. You get the point. Anyway, it’s just a picture. And a few silly shirts.”

We went to Ground Zero, then rode the subway back to upper Manhattan. At the corner of Madison Avenue and East 59th Street, we entered a coffee shop and grabbed hot beverages. As we crossed Central Park back toward our hotel, I ordered four giant pretzels from a street cart.

One at a time, I checked every box in April’s perfect tourist day in my head.

Back at the SkyHigh hotel, we lay down for a nap involving no sleeping at all. Entangled in the bedsheets, fully clothed and panting, we stared at each other, lips swollen, eyes glazed, cheeks warm. We kept our make-out session PG thirteen. I couldn’t tell if it was exciting, frustrating, or hot. Every nerve in my body was on fire. Only a small push and I’d break at the seams.

Fairy’s eyes glistened as she glared my way.

A soft blush colored her skin where my day-old stubble scratched her skin.

Her full lips, a dark shade of pink, trembled, begging me for attention.

My thumb traced their length and lingered on the small indentation in the middle.

April’s baby-blue irises turned midnight-blue and sucked me in. My body defied gravity, and she caught me in her embrace as I levitated toward her. We kissed some more, our hands traveling all over our still-clothed bodies.

“Tonight, wear the Nashville dress. We could buy you something new, but I didn’t enjoy that dress as much as I wanted to the last time, and it’s been haunting me ever since. You have no idea how I struggled to not rip it off you when I saw you wearing it. If your goal had been to torture me all along during my set in Nashville, well, it worked. My dick had a zipper imprint for two days afterward.”