One of the reasons Whiskey Abbey was so popular on Wednesdays was because of the music. On the weekends, Abbey hired local talent who always performed country music or classic acoustic oldies. However, on ladies’ night, she shook up the playlist, hiring a deejay from Leesburg who kept the floor packed. It was the one night of the week his generation could get together to bump and grind, this place the closest they’d ever get to a big city nightclub in Gracemont.
He and Jessica had danced together on more than a few occasions whenever the other was trying to escape some unwanted suitor. She had great moves, an infectious laugh, and she was a genuinely fun person.
Glancing back the way he came, he saw Roni giving Jessica the evil eye, not that Jessica noticed and even if she had, she wouldn’t have cared. While Jessica shook her ass, clearly into the music, Maverick moved more stiffly, his heart not in the dance.
He’d been off-kilter since the wedding, and Ella’s unexpected appearance had thrown him for an even bigger loop.
When the music changed, a slow song coming on, Jessica spun in Maverick’s arms, her forearms resting on his shoulders.
“Thanks,” she said. “Jeff is a major douchebag. I swear I’m going to have to go home and take a long, hot shower, just to get his gross, leering cooties off me.”
“Happy to help.”
With her gratitude expressed, Jessica turned her attention away from him, watching the other dancing couples on the floor, while singing along to the song. It was probably the mostplatonic slow dance of his life, which meant, like Jessica, his eyes were free to roam the room.
Maverick’s gaze traveled to the table where he’d left his family. Everett was leaning closer to Ella, the two of them sharing a quiet conversation. Theo and Gretchen were on the dance floor as well, and Jace appeared to be ordering another round at the bar.
Maverick hated the jealousy coursing through him as Ella grinned at something Everett said. She must have felt his gaze, because hers traveled to the dance floor.
A smart man would have looked away, but now, just like when they were younger, Maverick got lost in her pretty green eyes.
She watched as he danced with Jessica, and Maverick was reminded of dancing with Ella. She hadn’t been allowed to go to prom because of her dad’s rule about her not dating until she was eighteen. He’d offered to go to her house to introduce himself to her father, and to make the prom request to him, but Ella had refused, claiming it wouldn’t do any good.
In the end, he’d attended his junior prom stag, hanging out with several other buddies who’d opted to remain dateless as well. It had been okay, but he’d spent the entire evening wishing he was with her.
So, the following week, Maverick had talked to Mrs. Crites about how sad he and Ella had been about not being able to go to prom, and that was when he’d enlisted the librarian’s help, getting her permission to decorate a small workroom in the library. With some twinkle lights and streamers, he and the librarian had managed to create a prom-like environment.
That Friday, when Maverick walked Ella from chemistry to the library, he had surprised her by bypassing the circulation desk and a winking Mrs. Crites, heading directly to their ownpersonal prom. Mrs. Crites, the old romantic, had even brought in some cookies and sodas for a small refreshment table.
“What is this?”Ella asked, her eyes wide when Maverick turned off the fluorescent lights, the room lit only by the twinkle lights.
Maverick hooked his phone to the Bluetooth speaker he’d dropped by the library before school and pushed play.
Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” started, and he held out his hand.
Ella accepted it, letting him pull her into his arms for the dance.
“Prom,” he said.
Ella reared back a couple inches. “What?”
“I wanted you to have a prom, Ella.” Maverick slid his arms around her waist, his hands gently gliding up and down her back.
“You did all this for me?”
Maverick couldn’t miss the surprise in her tone that told him Ella wasn’t used to people doing nice things for her. She didn’t say much about her home life, rarely talking about her parents. All Maverick knew about her family were factual bits and pieces, like the fact her dad worked as a custodian in a school in Loudoun County. That her mom was an amazing seamstress and made a lot of the clothes she and her sister wore. That her favorite person in the world was her Gigi, who still lived in Idaho, and whom Ella missed terribly.
“Of course, I did, Firefly,” he replied, giving her a soft kiss on the cheek.
Ella sniffled, and he realized her eyes were wet.
“Crying?” he asked.
“This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.”
He smiled, pleased by her words because if he had his way, he’d spoil her with sweet gestures for the rest of his life. Maverick might only be seventeen, but he didn’t doubt for a second that Ella was it for him.
He’d fallen in love with her, and he was certain—all the way to his bones—that he’d never feel this way about anyone else.