Then I glance back at Hailey, whose eyes are shining with tears.
“I owed you, and I always repay my debts.” She slips away, back to her happily-ever-after, and I take a deep breath.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Magic
Lincoln
AfterHailey leaves us inthe foyer, Ebony doesn’t move toward me. She stands there, facing me, her feet rooted to the stark white marble floor, her chest rising and falling with each shallow breath. She’s waiting, tear-filled eyes fixed on me, as if she’s expecting an explanation for my text and wondering why I’m here. I see it in her eyes, though—she’s in her head, too afraid to draw conclusions on her own.
She told me she wants to be my wife, then asked me not to respond immediately, to give it some thought.
As if I ever needed time.
“You’re staring,” I say, taking a step toward her. “Are you surprised I’m here?”
A disbelieving laugh slips out of her, and she shrugs as if to say,Is this whatwe’re doing? Playing a guessing game? Put me outof my misery.
“I’m assuming you’re Hailey’s guest,” she says softly but impatiently. “You said that you were done thinking…”
“Mm-hmm. Hailey thought I should come get my woman.”
Ebony watches me, her bright hazel eyes searching mine as I take another step closer. “She said that?”
“Hey, that woman can beveryconvincing. When I told her I was respecting your request to give it time, she flat-out told me that no womanreallywants a man to take his time.” I chuckle. “She said no matter what advice I got from my guys, it was a test that I was clearly failing if I’d waited more than five seconds.”
She laughs through her tears, throwing her head back and smiling to the sky. “Aw, what am I going to do with that woman?”
With long strides, I close the distance between us and cradle the soft curves of Ebony’s face.
“I’d say you should probably thank her,” I murmur, “the way I did, for helping me get out of my own way. For helping me understand what really matters.”
I lower my mouth to hers, but she pulls back, eyes wide.
“You still didn’t answer my question. What does ‘I’m done thinking’ mean, Linc? Can we talk about—”
Her words dissolve on my lips as I kiss her quiet, the weight of her questions fading into the background. Everything falls away as she teases her tongue into my mouth, the kiss quickly growing urgent, her fingers flexing and pulsing over my chest. And in this moment, it’s just the two of us, our hearts beating in rhythm, our breaths mingling.
God, I want to tell her, to explain everything, but I can’t. Not yet.
It’s not time.
A few seconds pass before I break the kiss, lingering for a moment, our foreheads pressed together, letting the warmth of her skin against mine anchor me. “Baby, I only gave you time because that’s what you asked for. And I might’ve gotten some bad intel from Dom and Josiah, but the point is, I respected your request, and Iwillgive you my answer—but I’ve got one of my own.”
She closes her eyes, shaking her head. “I should’ve known you’d find a way to flip this around.”
“Not flip it around,” I correct her. “It’s just a small request. A teeny-tiny favor.” I pause for effect, savoring this moment, needing to watch her beautiful face react. “Dance with me first?”
In my head, it sounded smooth,GQ—nothing like a brotha laying his heart bare and asking his woman to dance. Right?
Wrong.
Ebony blinks repeatedly. “You want todance?”
“I do. So is that a yes or a no?”
Her lips part as if she wants to protest, but then she seems to think better of it. Instead, she laughs an infectious laugh that I feel all over my skin.
