Theo
SOUTH brONX CLASSICAL
I was busy eyeing the thick planks of wood lined against the amphitheater wall as Miss Gem nattered confidently about how long it’d take to build a realistic-looking porch for her main characters to sit on.
I sized up the stage, made a few mental notes about height and width, and scribbled her requests down on paper.
“Something like this?” I asked, showing her the sketch I’d thrown together.
She hummed a tune as she looked it over, and I recognized the bars of a Def Leppard song.
“You like rock?” I asked, surprised.
“Hmm?” She looked up, distracted. “Oh. I didn’t used to, but Miss Walker does. She had her music on while she helped me put the script together, and now it’s stuck in my head.”
I clamped my mouth shut. I needed to hear about Mia Walker like I needed to hear the death knell.
“Speaking of,” Miss Gem went on, slapping the paper I held with the back of her hand. “I’m pretty sure she’ll want to weigh in on this.”
My brain stuttered. But before I could ask why Mia would need to know anything about the set design, a refined British accent growled out, “Oh for the love of–”
I looked up just in time to see Mia glaring at the ceiling, flipping it off with both hands.
My eyes moved on their own as I took in her smooth, long legs, bare in a breezy white floral dress, and my mind went from stuttering to shattered.
She marched toward me and Miss Gem, looking about as angry as she always did, and I struggled to keep my mouth closed.
“What are you doing here?”
My gaze dropped to her chest before I wrenched my focus to the ground, but the damage was done. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and the hard peaks of her perky nipples were just… there, pushing against the thin fabric of her dress.
“Well?” she prodded. “Can’t I go a whole twenty-four hours without having to see you?”
Miss Gem gave her a pointed look. “Mr Hudson volunteered to design our sets.”
Mia crossed her arms and let out a noise. “You’re a musician, a father, and now you’re a carpenter? Is that what you do for work?”
Answering her would’ve meant speaking, and right now my tongue felt too big for my mouth. I lifted a shoulder instead.
“As talkative as ever,” she muttered, exasperated. “Where’s Kira?”
“In the bathroom,” Miss Gem supplied. She checked her watch and tutted. “Actually, I need to grab my folder from my desk. There’s a screenshot of Kat’s porch from the movie in it–it might be a good reference.”
Mia grumbled under her breath as the drama teacher left the room in a whirlwind of color, leaving me alone with a barely dressed Mia.
“So you’re not here to complain about me?” she asked.
It should’ve surprised me, but given how I’d acted yesterday, her question was fair. I swallowed back the saliva building in my mouth, then asked, “We have a truce, don’t we?”
She scoffed. “Am I supposed to take that as a no?”
I pushed myself to meet her eyes, ignoring the thick jolt of lust that came from having her eyes on me.
Those eyes, those lips. Fuck…
“I’m just here to help Kira. I didn’t know you’d be here.”
Her frown deepened. “Clearly.”
I let my gaze drop, taking in every inch of her smooth skin. When my stare met hers again, she raised a brow at me. “It’s hot outside.”
“You’ve been in this dress… all day?”
She laughed, surprised by my question. “No, of course not. I went home and changed.”
She paused, then eyed me, skeptical. “So you’re here to help?”
“That’s what Kira signed me up to do.”
Mia fought a smile. “Your daughter is good at signing you up for things, isn’t she?”
I looked at the paper in my hands. “She doesn’t really give me much of a choice.”
Mia pursed her lips like she found this whole thing hilarious. “Well, I’ll give you credit for being here. Maybe our truce won’t be ripped to shreds. As long as you show up on time.”
Footsteps pounded on the concrete outside, and I hoped it was Kira. I needed to not be alone with this woman.
“Okay, I think I have–” Miss Gem stepped back into the amphitheater, flipping through her folder as she walked, and planted her shoulder right into the plank of wood propped against the wall.
It wobbled, teetered forward, and in under a handful of seconds, started to fall.
And Mia just stood there, staring at it.
I moved on instinct, wrapping my hand around Mia’s waist. She made a high-pitched noise as I pulled her to me, and the wood thudded to the ground. Right where she’d been.
Her hand was on my chest as she stared at the plank, while Miss Gem lingered in the doorway, repeating her apology over and over.
I should’ve let her go then, but I’d lost the ability to think. All I was aware of was how soft she felt against me.
Mia looked up at me like she wasn’t sure I was really there, holding her, and my cock swelled at the sight of her slightly open mouth.
She smelled so spicy and sweet that it made me want to sink my teeth into her neck. The thought of her back arching, gasping as I bit into her, snapped me back to reality.
Jesus, I was acting like a caveman.
But before I could get my shit together, she turned in my grip and murmured a curt, “Thank you,” as her hand formed a fist in my shirt.
“Are you all right, Miss Walker?” Miss Gem asked, eyeing the heavy plank on the ground.
Mia blinked. A moment later, she was an arms length away from me.
“I’m fine,” she answered. “You found the photo you needed?”
Her hands were on her hips, her voice measured and calm as she spoke to the tall, colorful woman as if nothing had happened.
But the heat under my skin, and the hint of pink scattered across her cheeks, forced me to admit I didn’t imagine it.
I had Mia Walker in my arms.
And I liked it.