Read Only in Time (A Mystique Antiques Novella) for Free Online

just at the edge of the stage, he looked as though he could leap from it and land just a few feet from her.
    The longer he stared at her, the harder it became to look at anything but him. She loved the way his dark curls brushed against his temples as he bobbed his head with the music. And the way his shoulders curled in when he changed chords on his guitar. Even the way he squinted his eyes when hitting the harder notes. But his smile…it intoxicated her more than anything she’d tasted inside the martini glass. The same smile that showed off a cute little dimple in his right cheek.
    When Ally met his eyes again, something inside them shifted. He looked older, wiser, more…familiar.
    What was it about that dimple that jarred something in the back of her mind?
    She slowed her movements, taking her hips from a full-blown shake to a gentle sway. The thump of her heart competed with the drums until the beats faded and all that remained was the twang of the guitar chords.
    Dark brows pinched until his piercing eyes disappeared behind closed lids. The heat building in Ally’s body waned. She wasn’t sure when his attention had become her sole desire, but she felt like she would explode if he didn’t open his eyes and meet hers again.
    Her stomach tightened in a perfect little knot just above her navel. Need pulsed inside her veins, the need to run up to the stage and demand him to look her in the eye, to tell her his name, to explain why she felt empty when she wasn’t the center of his attention.
    No man had ever caused such a reaction in her heart, but a boy had. Once. Years ago. Six years to be exact. In this very town. The last place she’d saw him. The last time she’d been able to be herself around any man. And that boy…he’d been more than just some guy. He’d been her confidant. Her shoulder to cry on. Her best friend. Even more so than Cassie.
    God, she missed him. She missed Jonah with every beat of her heart.
    Jonah, with hair as black as tea leaves.
    Jonah, with eyes as green as a granny smith apple.
    Jonah, with a smile sweeter than strawberry shortcake. A dimpled strawberry shortcake.
    Sweet Jesus…Could he be her Jonah?
    No! He couldn’t be. Her mother’s mention of him earlier. That was all this was. Her mind putting two things together because she didn’t want to think about him. About how he made her heart thump like a base drum—just as loud, just as deep. How a brush of his hand made her skin erect with gooseflesh.
    There was no way possible this man and her Jonah were one and the same. Ally refused to believe it. Refused to get her hopes up.
    Until he smiled again.

CHAPTER 4
     
    Jonah gripped the guitar’s neck, sliding his fingers over the fretboard. The familiar feel of steel strings pressed into his skin, causing his lips to crook at the corner. Each note poured out of the resonating chamber toward the packed dance floor, bringing more and more bodies into view.
    He’d forgotten how much he loved making a crowd move to the music. Had forgotten the amount of satisfaction he got from playing.
    His eyes drifted toward Theo as he belted out some lyrics. Guess his brother had been right in asking him to fill in for Jeff. Despite how much Jonah tried to fight it, a big part of him would always be a musician. Sound producing would never be as good as the real thing. Making the magic.
    Theo gave him a knowing wink before grabbing the mic to sing the chorus. Switching chords, Jonah’s focus shifted to the dance floor. He spotted two girls, maybe his age, grinding their hips in a rhythm that had every man in the bar staring. A twinge of sympathy filled him for the men who hadn’t come alone. Most of them were getting death stares from their girlfriends, wives, whatever. Some even deflected slaps.
    One poor guy suffered the worst. His significant other slapped him so hard he fell off his barstool. Of course, the way he stumbled when getting up said it hadn’t taken much to knock him on his