She hadn’t even realized she was. Their fingers were entwined again, easy and natural. She didn’t pull away.
“Maybe I’m just committed to the fake-dating mission,” she said softly.
He chuckled, leaning in until his breath stirred her hair. “Good. Because I take my assignments very seriously.”
If anyone passed by right then, they’d look like any other couple stealing a quiet moment by the lake with his arm around her shoulders, their bodies angled toward one another. She knew it was supposed to be pretend, but to Zoe, it felt achingly real. Every heartbeat, every inch between them charged with something neither of them could name.
“You know,” she murmured, pulling back to look up at him, “public displays of affection are practically required if we want to win Couple of the Year.”
“Guess I’ll have to practice,” he teased.
Her laugh faltered when he leaned his head toward her, lips close enough that she could feel the warmth of his breath. She felt the magnetic pull between them. The force that was always there. At that moment, she thought he might actually kiss her.
TEN
JACKSON
Sunday, March 9th
Jackson leaned against his Harley at the edge of the square, waiting. He’d walked Zoe back to her apartment after their stroll around the lake, and she’d darted upstairs to change while he warmed the motorcycle up.
He glanced up when he heard her boots on the sidewalk.
Gone was the floral dress that had fluttered around her knees on their walk, switched out for jeans that hugged her curves just right. Her hair was still loose, catching the sunlight like spun gold as she walked toward him, helmet tucked under one arm.
“Figured I’d be more comfortable this way,” she said, smiling as she reached him.
Jackson’s lips lifted in the corner. “Can’t say I’m complaining.”
She arched a brow. “About the jeans or the fact that you won’t have to stop every five miles to rescue me from a gust of wind?”
“Both. Ready?” he asked, holding out his spare helmet.
“I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this,” Zoe said.
Jackson grinned. “It’s just around the lake. I’ll keep it slow.”
He helped her fasten the strap, fingers brushing against her jaw. Her skin was warm beneath his touch, and when she looked up at him through her lashes, it was all he could do not to close the distance between them. If it happened, he wouldn’t rush it. It would just be a soft kiss, a gentle reminder of how much she meant to him. How much these moments meant, when it was just the two of them and the open air.
“Better?” he murmured.
“Better,” she whispered back.
He wondered if she felt the pull too, the magical current that seemed to ebb and flow whenever they were together.
He swung onto the bike and held it steady while she climbed on behind him before slipping her arms around his waist. The heat of her body seeped through his jacket, her hands holding tight. She fit against him perfectly.
He kicked the bike to life and pulled away from the curb. He kept it slow and steady until they were out of the downtown area. Then he gave the throttle a bit of gas, enough to make the bike lurch forward. Zoe tightened her grip around his waist as she gasped.
“You said you weren’t going to go fast!” Zoe yelled over the roar of the engine.
“I lied,” Jackson called back with a chuckle.
They settled into the speed as the Harley hugged along the edge of the lake. The world blurred into color and sound with blue sky, silver water, and the steady thrum of the engine beneath them. Zoe’s hands rested lightly at his waist. Each time she shifted, leaning with him into a turn, he felt it like a pulse.
Jackson wished the library wasn’t so close. Days like this, the kind that smelled of thawing earth in sunshine, were meant for getting lost. For taking the long way around the lake, or better yet, heading straight out of town until the road turned to open country and the horizon felt like freedom.
If they were a real couple, they’d pop into the library for a minute, and then he’d tempt her—slowly, with his mouth, with his words, to come away with him.
