A Dash of Longing

©Lora Darling

An hour after the last plate had been scraped clean, they sat side by side in front of the dormant fireplace in the out-of-date drawing room. The phonograph had been wound to life again, and a sad tune floated in the air behind them. It wasn’t music Matt particularly favored, but the plinking piano and the forlorn horns were somehow appropriate for the moment.

In contrast to the soothing music, caution and desire battled within him. He didn’t want to come off as a brute and treat Vivian as if she’d been hired to keep him company for the night, but he very much wanted to kiss her again. She’d warned him earlier to be careful, and at that moment he’d realized she wasn’t like any of the other women he’d dated. Despite the chic haircut, the sexy top, and the killer python shoes, she was a normal gal from a normal part of the world, looking to live a normal life.

His life had ceased to resemble normal so long ago he was amazed he recognized the novelty when confronted with it, but Vivian made him feel like a small-town kid again. It was a feeling he hadn’t realized he missed until the moment she appeared at the foot of his driveway.

Still unsure, but willing to take a risk, he reached for her hand.  “I was going to ask you to dance, but I think I’ll do this instead.”

Their mouths came together with a fire that had been absent in their first kiss.