He immediately pulled his arms behind him and tugged off his button-up flannel shirt, leaving him in nothing but a thin, white tee. Emily was confused and a little taken aback by it until he held it out for her to take. “You’re cold. Put this on until your friends come.”
In the couple of minutes that they had been near each other, Emily had caught his scent in the breeze a few times. She didn’t know what it was, but she found it intoxicating, so the thought of being surrounded by it filled her with a childish giddiness. Except, she didn’t want to appear too eager to accept his shirt. Lucky for her, though, Andy didn’t give her a chance to refuse or accept it before wrapping it around her shoulders.
A contented sigh floated past her lips as she basked in the warmth left from his body.
“The fireworks should be starting soon. If your friends don’t show up, would you like to watch them with me?” There was a level of hopefulness to his question that made it impossible For Emily to turn him down.
His smile covered his entire face when she nodded, making her desperate to see him in the light. She wanted to know if his features matched the ones painted in shadows. And suddenly, the prospect of spending more time with him had her admitting the truth. “They probably aren’t going to show up. I’m sure they’d be here by now if they were coming.”
“Maybe they’re just running late.”
She smiled, warmed by his optimism. “Doubtful.”
“You don’t think they ditched you, do you?”
“No. If anything, it was a communication error. I didn’t even want to come out at all, but they convinced me to join them, and they must not have heard me agree. Either that or they came by the church, didn’t see me, I didn’t see them, so they left without me. Regardless, though, they would’ve been here by now.”
An onslaught of emotions consumed Emily, each one conflicting with the next. She hadn’t wanted to leave her house, yet she did, and until a few minutes ago, she was eager to return to the comfort of her own bedroom. She’d also been annoyed with Holly and Jan for not showing up. Except now that she could potentially spend a little longer with Andy, she was no longer bothered by their absence.
“So, does this mean you’ll stay and watch the show with me?” Had there been more light where he sat, she would’ve seen the excitement brighten his eyes and linger on his lips as he nearly held his breath for her response.
“What do you mean stay? Aren’t you going to Main Street with everyone else?”
As if weightless, Andy stood and grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet. “We could if you want, but before you make up your mind, you should know that I have the best seat in town to watch the Fourth of July show.”
“Where’s that?” The curiosity in her voice sounded flirtatious to his ears.
He couldn’t hide the smile dancing in his words when he said, “You’ll see.” Then he dragged her behind him with ease, up the stone steps, around the side of the building, and through a small door hidden in the corner.
Emily followed without hesitation as they weaved through the dark church like he’d done this a million times blindfolded. Even though she’d gathered here every Sunday for her entire life, she wouldn’t have been able to navigate the floorplan like he did. It was enough to fill her mind with question upon question, though she didn’t dare speak aloud for fear they’d get caught.
Coming to a stop in front of a door in the back, Andy carefully and quietly turned the knob before pulling it open. Not one sound resonated other than the subtle flick of a switch when he flooded the space with dim yellow lights that lined the walls as high as she could see.
“We can’t go up there,” Emily whispered, staring at the winding staircase that seemed never-ending, as though it reached the heavens.
“Yeah, we can. I do it all the time. Trust me.”
“I just met you five minutes ago.”
His laugh rolled through the air, filled the stairwell, and surrounded her in a cocoon of solace. It was enough to make her stop and listen. Stop and watch. Stop and wait. For him. For Andy. For what he wanted to show her.
“I work here—well, on the grounds. I handle the maintenance, which means I have keys to every door in this entire building. So if you don’t trust me, then at least trust Pastor Furlong, who trusts me. I think it’s safe to say they wouldn’t have given me one key, let alone all of them, if I wasn’t an honest person.”
With the fear of getting in trouble waning considerably, Emily focused on the man in front of her. The bulbs lining the small space may have been dim, but they were a hundred times better than the muted moonlight outside, making it easier to take in the sight of him.
Immediately, she was in awe.
His dark hair sat messily on his head, disheveled and wavy, full of body. His eyes were dark, so dark that she couldn’t discern the color beneath the shadow his eyebrows created. He was tall, thin, and unbelievably handsome. His sharp jawline, decorated in inky stubble, stole her breath as she fought the urge to stroke his cheek, just to see what it felt like beneath her nails.
As Emily stood in front of him, head tilted back, staring into his eyes, completely and utterly speechless, she couldn’t deny the air of comfortableness about him. Even though she’d only just met him—no opportunity to prove his trustworthiness yet—she conceded and stepped into the stairwell with him.
“My God, you’re so beautiful.” Andy’s words fell against her lips in a wave of heat, providing instant warmth. They were raw and honest, almost like a secret he hadn’t wanted to share, but it had escaped his lips anyway. And as if realizing he’d spoken out loud, he shook his head and turned to lead Emily up the winding stairs, her hand clutched securely in his.
The climb to the top didn’t take long at all. To Emily, it seemed to have taken less than a minute. Then again, that might have had something to do with the handsome distraction in front of her. She’d fully regarded his face in the light, and now that she stood behind him, the heat of his palm embedded into hers, she took advantage of the view—which was wrapped nicely in a pair of denim Levis.
By the time they made it to the door at the top, she didn’t have a single intelligent thought left in her head. So rather than speak, she waited patiently while he grabbed a set of keys from his pocket, flipping through them all until he found the one he needed. Then, taking her hand again, he led her through the small opening to the iron gangway that wrapped around the stone column.
“I gave in on the stairs, but I’m pretty sure we aren’t allowed out here,” she muttered as she contemplated going back inside where she knew it was safe. The only thing keeping her from falling off the three-foot-wide metal walkway was a handrail, which she held onto until her knuckles glowed white.
“Just relax,” Andy cooed, hoping to calm Emily enough to at least enjoy her night with him. “I’m out here all the time; I promise, it’s okay. We won’t get in trouble, and you won’t fall. I know it’s hard to tell right now, but this is beyond sturdy.”
“What in the world do you do out here all the time,” she questioned, mimicking him.
“How else do you think the windows get cleaned? And the steeple.”