Page 114 of Wilde Flame

Finally, I made my way into the room. Before she could spot me, I grabbed her hand and started to dance. She was soon laughing as I spun her around the room. The paintbrush fell to the plastic-covered floor as we danced like two silly fools. The song changed again, to a slower one this time. I drew her to me, and she wrapped her arms around my neck as I put mine at her waist.

We danced without saying anything for a few moments, before I asked, “What’s this song?”

She looked up at me with big bright eyes. “It’s called ‘One More Night’. Phil Collins sings it.”

I nodded. She lay her cheek against my chest as we slow danced in the middle of the room. This felt so fucking right. I wanted to pick her up and take her to my bedroom and make love to her, but I was going to do this the right way.

The words of the song penetrated my mind as I listened to them. When they came to an end, Lilibeth stepped back. A fast country song started, and she turned and grabbed her phone off the windowsill. She stopped the song and slowly turned back to look at me.

“I was just trying some samples on the wall. I wasn’t sure if we should do gender neutral or choose a color once we find out the sex of the baby, or…”

Her voice trailed off as I walked up to her once again. I cupped her face in my hands and smiled. “Will you go on a date with me tonight?”

She blinked in confusion. “A date?”

I nodded. “Yes, Lili. A date.”

“I thought you didn’t want anything other than friendship?”

I ran my thumb gently over her cheek. “I’ve been denying my feelings for you, Lilibeth, and I’m so tired of trying to pretend that every time you walk into a room, you don’t take my breath away. I’m tired of pretending that your smile doesn’t make my knees weak. I know you’re nothing like Rachel, and I’m so sorry about last night—”

She shook her head and pressed a finger to my lips. “I’d love to go on a date with you.”

Smiling, I leaned down and brushed my lips gently across hers. “My next question. Is this paint safe for you to be using?”

Laughing, she nodded. “It is.”

I looked at the colors on the wall. “Okay, we’ve got pink, blue, yellow, mint green, and gray. I don’t think I’m liking the gray.”

“Me either. Caden?”

I turned back to her. Her beautiful face glowed, and her cheeks were a faint shade of pink. “What happened between last night and this morning?”

“I talked to my parents.”

Her brows rose in question.

“We had a good talk about my feelings for you, and how I was being a complete ass.”

“Your feelings for me?”

I nodded. “Lilibeth, from the first moment I laid my eyes on you, you made me feel something I’ve never felt before.”

Her gaze narrowed. “Not even with Rachel?”

“Not even with Rachel. Not with anyone. I’ve been denying it because I knew this was different from anything I’d ever experienced, and it scared the hell out of me. I thought getting over my ex was hard. But with everything I was feeling for you, I kept thinking, if I gave you my heart, and you broke it… Let’s just say, that idea was utterly terrifying. When my father suggested I start slowly, by taking you on a date, I laughed at first. But then it made sense.”

“It’s kind of going backward.”

I smiled. “It is. But I’m tired of wasting time because I’m afraid to open my heart again. And I’ve never had this kind of relationship with a woman. No, I don’t mean because you’re pregnant. Don’t tell Levi I’m about to say this, but…you’ve slowly become my best friend. And it’s been killing me to avoid you, because all I want to do is tell you about my day, or how a stupid cow got stuck in a water trough, or how Gatlin thought he could ride a stallion and it threw his ass so far in the air I was sure he was going to break both legs when he hit the ground. Instead, I haven’t been sharing any of those things because I’m an idiot.”

Her eyes filled with warmth. “You’re not an idiot.”

A humorless laugh slipped free. “I am an idiot. But I’m tired of hiding, pretending I don’t have feelings for you. I want to see where this goes.”

She chewed on her lower lip before she asked, “Are you really sure?”

I took her face in my hands once more. “I’ve never been so sure of anything in my entire life.”