Truth

What did those words even mean? They were bullshit lyrics. I knew it, and she knew it.

Brooklyn suddenly paused her fingers and looked up at me with an imperceptible look on her face.

“You’re not doing it right,” I intoned.

Brooklyn cocked an eyebrow with force. “I’m doing it exactly like you did.”

“You aren’t,” I countered, raising an eyebrow right back.

Her lips formed into a pout, and something sparked inside of me that was far too powerful to shut down. “I’ll show you. Come here.” Do you have no s

elf-control?

She all but glared at me. “I know how to play guitar.”

I side-eyed her. “You do, but I can teach you how to hold your guitar in a better place, allowing you to feel the music reverberate through your chest, through your entire body—so that way, you can truly connect.” I shrugged while looking back at my own guitar. “But by all means, suit yourself, but it’ll make you better in the long run. You know…if you ever wanted to teach guitar lessons on the side.”

“No. I don’t need your help,” she argued with a bite behind her words.

I couldn’t stop the words from flying out of my mouth. “Are you angry with me?”

Her fingers stilled on her guitar. I knew she was mad at me; I’d be mad if someone rejected me after having a heated kiss like we had.

“Why would I be angry?” Brooklyn finally met my eye, the fire flaming deep within.

“I think we both know the answer to that,” I responded.

Her cheeks flushed instantly, but she kept her glare on me. “I have no idea what you’re referring to. I’m not angry about anything other than you thinking that I can’t play guitar correctly.”

I shook my head. “I never said that. I just said that I could make you better.” I shrugged again, going back to my own guitar. “It’s fine if you want to stay average. I was just thinking that you said you needed money—you could start teaching guitar lessons, too.”

I could sense that Brooklyn was pondering the idea. Silence filled the room. The only things I could hear were my own naughty thoughts of wanting her to be closer to me. I was a corrupted son of a bitch. I shoved her away after our kiss, promising myself that I’d get my shit together, and now I was trying to pull her back in. I was trying to reach that high I felt last night.

My entire body stilled as I heard her little body shuffling toward me. I looked up at her standing a mere foot away with her guitar outstretched in my direction. I could tell she was annoyed that I was teaching her something, but I could also tell that she really wanted me to.

I shoved my own guitar away, pushing it further down onto the cushion beside me, and scooted my body back so I was resting along the couch. I spread my legs out and then patted the little bit of cushion in front of me, my heart beating against my ribcage with such force that I thought it might actually snap a few ribs.

Brooklyn’s face changed to a light shade of pink as she pulled her guitar tightly to her body and finally sat down on the couch in front of me so far away that her butt almost fell off the cushion.

I ground my teeth as I stretched out my hands and wrapped them around her waist, pulling her in closer to my body. Her breath caught—as did mine—when our bodies touched. I shouldn’t be doing this, but God, I don’t think I have it in me to stop.

“Okay, now hold your guitar like you are about to play,” I rasped.

Brooklyn did as I said, placing her guitar on her crisscrossed legs. She was tense—her shoulders pulled up to her ears, her spine a perfectly straight line, the points of her elbows sticking out from beside her body.

“Relax,” I whispered, angling my face near hers to see her guitar. My veins were full of exhilaration, pumping a need throughout my body that was hard to ignore.

Why does she have to smell so good?

Brooklyn’s body changed from firm to soft as my breath hit her exposed skin, her posture relaxing, and her breathing nice and easy. I placed one hand on top of hers and glided it slowly down the slope of the guitar, our hands moving together over the strings. I pulled the guitar closer to her body at the same time I moved closer to her back. My heart was in my throat, causing my voice to come out rough and sultry. “You need to feel the guitar through your torso.” I briefly moved my hands to her firm stomach. “Let the sound almost lull through your body, allowing the music to flow throughout, to overtake your senses.”

Brooklyn shivered under my touch, and every part of my body erupted in flames. She began to play the same tune that I had played earlier, only this time, I could tell she put more feeling into it. I glanced down to her tranquil face, her eyes closed as her fingers moved swiftly over the strings. “That’s better, right?” I asked, my voice no more than a soft whisper along her neck. Her neck was so close to my mouth that if I just bent my head down a little farther, I could place my lips on her skin, feeling the softness of it.

Brooklyn’s head jerked a little, and her eyes opened, the swirl of green hitting me in the core. She nodded her head slowly, causing some of her hair to fall in front of her face. I reached my arm up and tenderly moved it out of the way, unknowingly losing any hold on the tiny bit of control I had. My calloused fingers brushed along her high cheekbone, moving the silky piece of hair behind her ear. My eyes fell to her lips, and she licked that bottom lip again. And right then, I let another piece of my wall tumble. I leaned in a fraction, Brooklyn’s lips parting with a small puff of breath, and then I took her mouth in mine—again. My hand cupped the side of her head, my fingers intertwining between the glossy strands, as I moved my mouth over hers, the softness of her lips feeling like a freedom I’d craved for so long.

Brooklyn opened her mouth further as she pushed her guitar out of the way, moving gracefully up to my body, our chests resting along one another’s, aching for more. Then my phone rang, and every alarm in my head went off, signaling my body to get the fuck away before I did any more damage.

I broke the kiss and shuffled backwards, my eyes blazing into hers. Brooklyn’s eyes widened at the same time, her fingers going up to her mouth.