“Thank you,” she murmured, enjoying the way Landon made her feel. “You’re someone I can always talk to. That’s awonderful quality to possess. You provide a soft place to fall. Not many people have made me feel that way in my life.”
“That makes me happy to hear,” Landon said, glancing at his watch. “I think we have a few more hours ahead of us. Let me help you with these dishes,” he said, picking up his plate. One of these days she hoped to meet Daisy Stone. She’d raised an absolute gentleman.
“Just put them in the sink,” Bailey said. “No big deal. The dishwasher will handle them later.”
They both got up and reached the sink at the same time. Their arms brushed against each other as they placed the plates down. She looked over at him. All her nerve endings were buzzing.
At the exact same moment they leaned in for a kiss.
As his lips brushed across Bailey’s, a hundred different thoughts went through his mind. The number one thought was how much he liked kissing Bailey. Her lips were soft and luscious, warm and inviting. The fact that she had just opened up to him in a big way about her father’s death made him feel closer to her than ever. She’d been vulnerable about her backstory. She was now fully embedded in his heart. When he wasn’t with Bailey, Landon found himself missing her. Aching for her. Life was too short to let the moment pass one by. He would regret it if he didn’t say something to her.
It was time for this faux romance to end. Pretending when his heart was aching for something more was no longer possible.
He pulled away from her, abruptly ending the kiss. Surprise shone in her eyes.
“What… is something wrong?” Bailey asked. A tinge of hurt registered in her voice. Landon hated being the one to make her feel this way.
He let out a ragged sigh. At this moment, Landon was acting on intuition. The situation no longer felt right in his gut. His intentions had been honorable, as were Bailey’s, but it was no longer sustainable. He had no idea whether Bailey would understand or feel the same way he did. His stomach twisted painfully every single time Hattie referenced Bailey as his girlfriend. The bottom line was he was lying, and he’d forced Bailey into a situation where she was lying to Hattie as well. It didn’t make him feel very good about himself. In this season that was supposed to be about love and light, this was all wrong. He shouldn’t have dragged her into this.
“Landon? Talk to me,” Bailey said. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Bailey, I don’t want to do this anymore. It doesn’t feel right to trick Hattie even if it makes her happy.” He pushed the words out of his mouth before he changed his mind.
Bailey raised a hand to her throat. She felt sick to her stomach. It was pathetic how much she’d grown to love being in this fake relationship with Landon. Upon deep reflection she knew it was selfish of her. She’d fooled herself into thinking this was about Hattie when in reality it had been all about her feelings for Landon. A way to get close to him. A way to be in his presence. How could she not have realized that until this very moment?
Normally she would make a joke to cover up her truefeelings, but the words wouldn’t come out of her mouth. How could she joke around when her heart was breaking?
“Oh,” she said. “Did I do something wrong?” Had she messed up in some way in front of his family?
“No, of course not,” Landon swiftly said. “You’ve been perfect. I couldn’t have asked for more.”
Stupid, stupid, stupid!She’d thought that things had been going so well between them until this exact moment. Now it felt as if everything had blown up in her face. She hadn’t even seen this coming.
And even though she’d been trying to convince herself that Hattie was the main reason she’d agreed to Landon’s plan, she now knew that wasn’t true. Bailey had been all in due to Landon. From day one she’d had a massive crush on him that had become so much more.
She willed herself not to cry. This hurt way more than she would’ve imagined, and it scared her. Her feelings for Landon had really intensified over the past few weeks. Why had she allowed herself to be in such a vulnerable position? Was this what it felt like to fall in love with someone?
“The thing is, I don’t want to pretend anymore, Bailey, because I want this to be real between us. And I may be talking out of my head as far as you’re concerned, but that’s how I feel.”
“What?” she asked, stunned by his admission. He wanted their relationship to be the real thing! “Are you serious?”
He nodded. “I am.”
“Landon!” She choked out his name, buoyed by the words coming out of his mouth. “That’s what I want too.”
Landon exhaled. “I wasn’t sure how this was going to go, if I’m being truthful.”
“I totally get that. But wanting to kiss each other when no one’s watching is a big clue,” she said, feeling a little breathless. She had wanted this so badly. And now it was happening.
Landon cupped her face in his hands and looked into her eyes. “I don’t know where this will end up, Bailey. I just know that I want to be with you. I want to be your man.”
Bailey wasn’t sure, but she thought she might have died and gone to heaven.
“I’m a bit rusty on relationships, but I want to try,” Landon said. “See where this can go.”
He sounded so sincere and a bit shy. And he was waiting nervously for her to say something back to him. She didn’t want to leave him hanging.
“Me too,” she said, wanting to let him know that they were on the same wavelength. “I want to be with you on a genuine level.”
