Page 33 of The Only Heart that Matters
He had come over to Cal’s house to deliver a gift to Charlotte from Callen. When I answered the door, he didn’t speak. And he didn’t hide the hungry way he took me in from head to toe. When he was done with his appraisal, his heated gaze met mine for a beat before he said, “Mia, you are the prettiest damn woman I have ever laid my eyes on, you know that? It’s gonna be a long ass day.”
After his compliment, I was the one left speechless. He walked past me, in his suit jacket and tie, dark denim jeans and cowboy boots, as I stood there, letting the freezing air in as I held the door open in shock.
His subsequent looks and gentle touches have frankly had me feeling a little horny all day.
Sexy. For the first time since becoming a mother, I’ve felt confident about my body. I’ve added a little extra swing to my hips tonight. And I may or may not have been purposely posing to maximize the slit of my dress, displaying more of my leg than is respectable for a single small-town mother. If only my self-confidence hadn’t brought with it even more confusion.
Exhaling several fortifying breaths, my emotions finally settle for the first time in two days when something in the air shifts. Holding my breath, hoping I’m not found, I still at the sound of boots on snow.
“Hey, wifey. Whatcha doin’ out here in the cold without your coat?”
And just like that... All calm flees from my body. The person I was hiding from has found me. Still, I refuse to look in his direction, hoping maybe I’m hearing things.
But then he steps in my line of sight, holding my coat open for me. “Put this on before you freeze to death.”
“Thanks.” One word is all I give him, not trusting myself enough to say more.
Being alone with Angus at midnight was not the plan.
Stepping closer to him so he can wrap the coat around me, I slip my arms inside and he pulls the front together but doesn’t zip it.
Doesn’t step away.
Instead, he moves closer.
My body buzzes from his nearness, as though every nerve is on high alert. I wait to see where he takes this, because his unwavering gaze hints at what I never dreamed could be true.
He wants me.
God, how I want him to want me.
Inside the barn, the countdown to the new year begins. This is my moment. My chance to take what I’ve always wanted and not let another what-if pass by unanswered. When the clock strikes midnight, I can either kiss him or forever wonder what it would feel like to have his lips on mine.
Adrenaline races through my body as I lift a foot to step into him, but before I get the chance to take what I’ve always wanted, he reaches inside my coat, resting his powerful hands on my hips. His eyes search mine, asking for permission.
Any other night, I would have stopped him, afraid to let this thing building between us ruin our friendship.
But not tonight.
When the countdown gets to three, one of his hands blazes a path up the side of my body, along the side of my breast, and up my neck. By the time the crowd yells, “Happy New Year,” that same hand tangles in my hair. His lips ever so gently press against mine. Once, twice, three times. Nothing has ever felt more natural. So right. On the fourth kiss, he traces the seam of my lips with his tongue, and I open to him.
He pins me against the ice-cold barn, his warm body pressing into me as if he can’t get close enough. My hands wrap around his back, exploring his expansive muscles.
“God, Mia.” One of his hands grabs my ass, connecting us even more. “You’re everything. Do you know that?”
Did someone spike my drink? Am I on some sort of trip right now?
“Angus...” I breathe out a puff of white air as he trails kisses down my neck.
Is this really happening?
“I’ve wanted you for so long.”
He what?
Another kiss on the neck.
“You. Are. All. I. Think. About.” His lips trail across my exposed collarbone.
