“I wanna know who this Mallory girl is,” she said, hands on her hips. “And how she caused you to take a vow of celibacy.”
Bryce stared at her, dumbfounded.
Beth broke into a fit of laughter.
His expression—somewhere between desire, disbelief, and total confusion—was priceless.
Giddiness took over. She started doing a ridiculous little victory dance. “I did it!” she crowed, spinning in place. “I got you! I got you with one of your double entendre things!”
“WOOOOMMMMANNN,” Bryce roared, grabbing the counter to steady himself, eyes wide like she’d short-circuited his brain.
When he looked at her again, something in his gaze shifted.
Beth froze.
The dancing stopped. Her eyes widened. She raised both hands in surrender. “Now, Bryce…”
He started toward her slowly, the kind of slow that made her pulse jump. “How could you do that?” he asked, voice low, steps deliberate.
“It’s only fair,” she said, backing away. “You do it to me all the time—!”
She squealed as he lunged. She bolted around the couch, giggling like she was fifteen again. He caught her, spinning her down into his lap as they collapsed onto the cushions in a tangle of limbs and laughter.
“Double entendre, huh?” Bryce said, fingers sneaking under the hem of the sweatshirt she wore—his sweatshirt—to tickle her waist.
“Yeah—Lynn told me what they’re called,” Beth managed between gasps. “I asked her for help. With flirting.”
“You asked Lynn?” Bryce paused, eyes locked on hers.
In the stillness, her boldness lingered.
Her fingers reached up and cupped his jaw, her touch slow, reverent. She took her time, studying his face—his eyes, the lines of worry that hadn’t quite smoothed out since their day at the hospital.
“Yeah,” she whispered. “I wanted to do a grand gesture. Something fun. For the first time I told you I loved you.”
His eyes lit with heated desire.
“Did it work?” she asked, her voice suddenly small. Hopeful.
“I don’t know,” he murmured, drawing her closer. “You haven’t said it yet.”
Beth rested her forehead against his, their breath shared in the inches between them. Her fingers slid into the hair at the nape of his neck, pulling him close. She kissed him—longer this time, surer. Not just affection, but something whole and sacred.
When she pulled back, her lips still brushed his as she spoke.
“I love you, Bryce,” she whispered. “You’re the one that I want.”
The last thing she saw before her eyes fluttered shut was Bryce’s smirk—his eyes warm, teasing—as he murmured against her lips “Tell me more, tell me more…”
Beth laughed softly against his mouth, giddy and breathless.
“And you thought watching Grease was a waste of a Sunday,” she whispered.
Bryce groaned, but his smile gave him away.
CHAPTER 31
Snuggled safe in his arms, marveling at her newfound boldness, Beth rested a hand on her abdomen, wondering if mama-bear instincts could kick in this soon. The thought made her chest tighten in a way that wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
