“Happy New Year!” Lucas yelled.
Moments later, Caleb was swept away by well-wishers, and I found myself exchanging greetings with friends, family, and even strangers.
The night stretched on, warm and glowing, until the last song finally played.
Caleb found me again and pulled me back onto the dance floor. “Happy New Year.”
“About time,” I teased. “Happy New Year.”
It was tradition to kiss at midnight. I knew it. He knew it. His eyes told me everything as my lips parted in anticipation. What kind of kiss would it be? Soft or firm? Lingering or fleeting? That suspended moment—the not knowing—felt electric.
Then a piercing feedback whine from the microphone sliced through the air, breaking the spell.
I blinked, the world slowly rushing back in around us. My gaze found his again, and the way he was looking at me made my heart stumble. “What you planned today,” I said, trying to gather the magic back into my hands, “the dress, the spa, Lucas, my friends…” My lips curled into a smile. “Thank you.”
He smiled, but there was something wistful in it, as if he felt the loss too.
“You have no idea how grateful I am,” I continued, “and how happy it made me that we’re all together tonight.”
“I’m glad you’re happy,” he said, holding me closer. “And I’m even happier that the last dance of the night is with me.”
I melted into him, pressing my hand to his chest,feeling the beat of his heart beneath my palm.Tell me you want me, I thought desperately.Tell me, Caleb—and I’ll take back everything I ever said about only wanting to be friends.
Back at his parents’mansion, Caleb tucked Lucas into bed.
I watched from the dresser as he loosened his bowtie and unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt, looking devastatingly handsome. In the mirror, I caught the way he exhaled, shoulders relaxing, as if the night had finally released its hold on him.
I was busy working the pins from my hair, but my attention was fixed on his reflection. One by one, my hair slipped free, cascading down my back. I felt his eyes on me before I saw him move.
He came up behind me, slowly, as though he was afraid to startle the moment. My pulse picked up, loud in my ears, my hands suddenly unsteady. When he stopped, he was close enough that I could feel his warmth and smell his cologne.
He reached for me gently and turned me around, his hands resting at my waist. “You were the most beautiful woman in the room tonight,” he said softly.
I lifted my chin, meeting his gaze, my heart pounding as I searched his face.
“A lot of people couldn’t stop watching you,” he added, his thumb brushing lightly beneath my chin. “Including me.”
I leaned into his touch without thinking and tilted my face up toward his, silently offering him everything I hadn’t said out loud. If I were four inches taller, I wouldn’t have hesitated. I would have closed the distance myself.
“I had a wonderful night,” I whispered. “It was spectacular. Thank you.”
He leaned in, slowly, as if savouring the seconds between us.
I closed my eyes, my heart threatening to burst as the space between us disappeared inch by inch. I could feel his breath against my lips. One more moment and?—
“Mama,” Lucas murmured.
The sound snapped us back to reality.
We both turned instantly, watching Lucas shift in his sleep before settling again. I let out a shaky breath, my forehead falling briefly against Caleb’s chest.
“Do you think he’ll sleep in tomorrow morning?” I asked quietly, my voice barely steady.
“This morning, you mean,” he said with a soft smile that held both amusement and restraint. “It’s late.”
His hands lingered at my waist, then he leaned down and pressed a tender kiss to my forehead—slow, deliberate, full of things he wasn’t saying. “You should get some rest,” he murmured. “Good night.”
And then he was gone.
