“Mmm.”
Jane beams, revealing the large gap between her two front teeth. “Youlikeher, don’t you?”
Before I can answer, their voices filter in from the main room. I turn toward Jane, shushing her with a finger at my lips. Unable to help myself, I lean forward, angling my head so I can watch their interaction from the practice room without making it obvious.
Jane giggles but does as she’s told, turning her head down and pretending to practice her hand positions as I listen in on Mac’s conversation with my new pink-haired obsession.
“Sorry about him,” Mac says. “Coupla screws loose with that guy. How can I help you?”
I watch Eloise dig her thumb into her cuticle, an anxious tic. “I saw your sign out front and wanted to see if you still had openings for guitar lessons?”
“Of course we do! I can show you some guitars for sale, unless you already have one?”
She shakes her head.
“Excellent! Right over here, we have?—”
“Actually… I have a question before we start looking.”
Mac quirks a brow, the slight twitch at the corner of his eye telling me he’s irked by her demeanor. But that doesn’t mean he’s going to give up on trying to get in her pants. “Sure, sweetheart. Ask away.”
She takes a deep breath like she’s steeling her nerves. “Is there… Would it be possible for me to purchase a guitar and store it here? I can pay you extra or a weekly fee. Whatever would work for you.”
Mac snorts. “Thatisan odd request…”
Eloise wrings her hands, her eyes floating around the room, never focusing on one thing for too long. “It’s just… I really don’t have any space in my house for a guitar.”
Mac’s expression is strained as he tries to work out her odd request. “It’s not apiano,sweetheart.”
She stiffens. “It’s averysmall house.”
Mac chuckles, but it doesn’t hold the same endearment as before. “I can sell you a wall mount.” He points at the rows of guitars on the wall. “See? It will hardly take up any space that way?—”
“I’m sorry, but this is a hard line for me,” she says, her voice shaking slightly. “I know it’s strange, but I need to keep the guitarhere, in the store… If you can’t help me, that’s perfectly fine. I’ll… find someone who will.”
She’s about to turn and head to the exit when Mac stops her. “Hold on! Since you insist… Sure. For you, I’ll work something out.”
Eloise lets out a breath, and it seems like a great weight has been lifted from her shoulders. “Thank you so much. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate… Just, thank you.” Her pretty pink lips spread in a smile—the first one I’ve seen—and my heart stutters at the beauty of it.
Mac, though, is apparently unaffected. “No problem, doll.” He waves, gesturing to her to follow him toward the wall of guitars. He starts pointing out different models he thinks would fit her best, spouting off a bunch of information that makes Eloise’s eyes go even wider.
Her nail finds her cuticle at the same time she folds her bottom lip between her teeth, clearly overwhelmed by the choices in front of her. Her gaze catches on a model stored away at the top corner, and my pulse spikes at the sound of joy that pushes from her lips.
“What about that one? It’sgorgeous.”
“Thatis a Gibson Custom Shop J-45. The sunburst amber finish is a limited release.”
“How much is it?”
Mac tries not to scoff and fails miserably. “I don’t know if I can sell you that one, sweetheart. It might go to waste.”
She frowns. “And what is that supposed to mean?”
He waves her off. “Nothing. I’ll pull her down for you to look at.”
Mac pulls the guitar off the wall, placing it into Eloise's outstretched arms like it’s made of gold—and for the price, it very well could be.
Eloise cradles the guitar, her pretty blue eyes flitting down to the price tag hanging from the neck. Her mouth pops in surprise, and she slowly hands the guitar back to Mac, her cheeks heating.
