Page 8 of Princess and Country

Dahlia

“Thanks for driving us, bro,” Carter told Jeff when we were on our way to play at Country Fest, a music festival thirty miles south of our hometown and twenty minutes east of Nashville.

Jeff shrugged from the driver's seat. “Anytime, guys. You’re talented. I’m happy to help you out whenever I can. Anyway, Brendan and a few guys will join me later to watch you play.” In the backseat, I stayed quiet. Quieter than usual. I kept a low profile, admiring the scenery through the window.

It’d been three weeks since that dinner where I realized I had it bad for Jeff. When my body ignited for the first time in his presence.

From that day on, I tried my best to avoid him as much as possible. Carter told me his brother had never been home so often as in the last month. Each time Mrs. Hills invited me to stay over, I found a million reasons to go back home. Yeah, I’d become this pathetic version of myself.

And each time, Carter begged me to stay with those stormy eyes of his. The ones I had a hard time resisting.

Addison and I had also been spending more time together in the last few weeks. She volunteered to be my distraction as often as possible. To keep me away from the Hills’ household. For my heart’s safety, as she claimed.

We both knew it was bullshit, but I was grateful for her efforts. Maybe if I stayed away from Jeff, my growing feelings for him would go away on their own. Maybe I’d grow some sort of armor, and his presence wouldn’t affect me anymore.

There was no harm in a little wishful thinking.

When Carter told me Jeff would be driving us today instead of his daddy, I wanted to fake a sickness. Or a voice loss. Anything to keep me at a safe distance from his brother.

Carter pivoted his upper body from the passenger seat and studied me. “Are you anxious, Dah? You’re not saying anything. Usually, when you’re nervous before a show, you can’t stop rambling.”

I plastered a smile on my face, doing my best to hide how I felt inside—my best friend was too good at reading me. “Yeah. I’m perfect. Just tired, that’s all. Don’t worry.”

I averted my gaze but ended up being sucked into Jeff’s dark irises as he stared at me through the rearview mirror. I tried hard, but I couldn’t swallow. Did my throat shrink in the last hour? I slid my shaky hands under my thighs, hiding my fidgeting from my best friend and his brother.

Jeff’s heated stare melted me in my seat. A pool of warmth rose into my cheeks. My spine tingled. I parted my lips to say something, but every word froze on the tip of my tongue.

Jeff’s eyes captured mine the entire ride. Whatever I did to avoid him, it didn’t work because my gaze met his every single time. Jeff had gained control of my body. Whatever he did, I hovered in his direction. He was a magnet, and I was made of steel.

Weak and malleable steel.

I flipped my copper hair over my shoulder. It curled into soft waves down my back. Jeff muttered something I didn’t catch from the backseat.

My breath stuck in my lungs.

“Did you say something?” Carter asked, raising his eyes from his phone screen, bringing his attention to his brother.

“No. Just cleared my throat.” Jeff and I exchanged a look through the mirror. He was lying.

My skin itched.

My insides dissolved.

My heart thundered.

For once, I wasn’t anxious about the show we were about to give, my mind too busy avoiding Jeff Hills.

“Okay, guys, we’re here,” he told us as he parked his gray pickup truck near the musicians’ entrance. Carter gave us each a pass to put around our neck.

His brother helped us unload our guitars and stuff from the cargo bed.

“Hey, Dahlia—” My heartbeat went up. Fast. No “Princess” this time. Jeff reached for my hand, and his fingers skimmed mine. “—watch over my brother, would you?”

I nodded, my mouth as dry as sandpaper and my heart flipping in my chest. “Sure. Always.”

Jeff offered me a tight-lipped smile, and I forced myself to orbit out of his magnetic field.

“We’ll be playing at six-thirty,” Carter informed him, oblivious to every word exchanged between his brother and me. “It’s not even noon, so we’ll have time to rehearse some more. Do you want to meet us before our set to grab a bite?”

“Sure. But I think I’ll hang with you guys in the meantime. I love watching you play. I’ve been doing it since you were seven-year-old kids. I consider myself your oldest and biggest fan.”

Jeff’s grin woke up something in me I couldn’t ignore. Spending our day with him didn’t seem like such a good idea. Would I even be able to focus on my music if he was around?

Carter draped an arm around his brother’s shoulders, pulling him into a hug.

“Yes, you are. I love you, big brother.”

“Love you too, little bro.”

Carter and Jeff were as close as Carter and I were.

If I had any doubt my crush—which I feared was now reciprocated—for Jeff was messy, it had just got messier. Someone—one of us—would suffer from a broken heart soon. And I wasn’t ready for it to happen.

We retreated backstage around six, and Jeff left to meet with his friends.

“I’ll see you guys later. Go, do your thing. I’ll cheer you from the crowd.”

Jeff would be watching us—watching me. Why didn’t it occur to me earlier? My heart leaped into my throat. I couldn’t breathe. With my eyes closed, I inhaled through my mouth to loosen the knots around my stomach.