I gulp as the question grows heavy in the air, causing me to shift beneath its lingering weight.
At last, her gaze meets mine. Her lips part. “Yes.”
Yes!It’s only one word, but in this instance, it’s gravity. Keeping me from drifting into darkness. Tethering me to thatthing called hope. Pulling me ever closer to this maddening woman I can’t get out of my mind.
A wave of confidence washes in, making my chest and shoulders rise. What if the two of us have somehow fallen into sync? Here we are, going through life, each bracing ourselves against the loneliness that awaits us if we fail to really give love a chance.
I search her face, and my eyes are drawn to the defined peaks of her upper lip and then that plump, lower pout.
And heaven help me, but her gaze drops to my mouth in return.
Before my inner voice can spoil the moment, I lean in, lower my head, and press a soft, lingering kiss to Maggie’s silky lips. Lips I’ve dreamed about more times than I can count. Pleasure stirs warm in my lower belly. I bite back a groan.Mmm. Even better than I imagined.
I pull back, willing my eyes to open once more and find her looking up at me in surprise.
My eyes narrow. “You’re not going to slap me now, are you?”
She tucks a stray strand of hair behind one ear. “Maybe.” Her cheeks go pink, somehow enhancing her beauty all the more.
My heart is pounding with triumph. I’m a kid again. An adolescent who just held hands with his first crush. As elementary as it might sound, I think I like Maggie, and I think Maggie likes me.
“Let me know if you need help placing the mugs in there,” I say, shifting my gaze back to the case. It’s a clumsy transition,but I’m already thinking of how to get more time with her now that my job here is almost done.
“I’d love that,” she says. “Then you can see how it looks all filled up.”
“Right.” I nod, then take a few backward steps as I scan the area once more. “Did you see anything you want added or changed?”
“Not right off,” she says. “I’ll look a little more and let you know.”
“Sounds good. Hey,” I add, switching gears as I make my way to the door. “What do we get if we win the story-telling event tonight?”
“A romantic date for two,” she answers, her cheeks growing pinker still.
“Hmm.” I glance at the parking lot before shifting my gaze back to her. “I hope we win.”
12
Maggie
What. Just. Happened?
I watch Braxton step out of the caboose, and it’s like seeing him for the very first time. My heart is pounding like a jackhammer. I trace over my lips with a shaky hand and relive the feel of his delectable mouth on mine. The way he leaned down, tilted his head and moved in for a soft, sensual kiss that did more to me than I’m willing to admit.
I am glued in place, heart melting over the rugged carpenter who works wonders with his artistic mind, his capable hands, and those mocha-brown eyes that—it turns out—have the power to turn my legsinto mush.
I hadn’t even seen it coming. Here I was, trying to orchestrate something with random men at the market and the gym; meanwhile, Cupid was readying his bow with his sights set on me, just like Clarissa Lovely said he would.
My eyes widen as I think of the first dart—Cupid’s clash.Chills erupt over my skin because Braxton and I totally clashed. There was nothing contrived about it.
“Wow,” I say breathlessly, stepping backward enough to lean against the wall.
AndCupid’s cringe—I was humiliated during the story telling event. Thathasto qualify.
That means I was hittwice. Two darts, one man, and one very sneaky Cupid.
Lovely said that having just one of those encounters was often impactful enough to bond couples in lasting ways, and here I’ve already experienced two with Braxton.
“It’s happening,” I say in a whisper.
