I bite back the smile brimming on my lips. “Unless…you weren’t really in love with him.”
“Of course I was.” She defends herself, but I don’t miss the slight twitch in the left corner of her lip. It’s always been her tell. Each of the Bentley siblings has a tell, but not one of them will admit they are wrong until proven. And I’m not stopping until she admits just how wrong she was.
I nod and take a step closer. “And you were going to get married to him. In Vegas?”
“Y-yes.” She swallows, then shivers.
“But you’ve never kissed him?”
She starts to nod, then stops.
I got her.
“I think you were scared to kiss him.”
She snorts. “No, I wasn’t.”
“You were terrified,” I say, just like I did, six years ago in this very spot.
Her lips part, but no words come out. She shivers again, and I shrug off my jacket and drape it around her shoulders.
I want to kiss her, but only when she’s ready.
I place a hand on her waist and tug her into me, and she lets out a soft gasp. Her amber eyes widen, and nearby lights reflect off her irises. “You should never let anyone kiss you unless you want them to,” I whisper.
She bites her lips, and I force myself to stay put. For a few more seconds.
“I’ve never wanted anyone to kiss me but you.” The words are a breathy admission.
I freeze . “You’ve never been kissed?” But more importantly, she wants me to kiss her?
She shakes her head and tugs at the top of her dress, and her bracelets tinkle against each other. “I think I’m more than ready for my first kiss.”
If that’s not permission, I don’t know what is. I drop my head slowly. Her eyes fall shut and her head tips back.
“Your first kiss should mean something,” I whisper. I brush my lips against her cheek and she leans into it. “And when you’re ready…” I press my lips to her ear, then back along her jaw, tracing my way to her mouth. “You take advantage of the moment.” I hover over her lips.
She grabs two fistfuls of my shirt and tugs me to her, melding our lips together. I kiss her soft and slow, letting her find her way through it. I tug on her lip and she wraps her arms around my neck.
Why haven’t I spent the last six years kissing her like this?
I pull back, “It was a good prank.”
She looks up at me with glassy eyes. “It’s not a prank anymore.”
Chapter 20
Grant
I take Lennox’s hand as we walk back to the house. I don’t care if her brothers give us crap. Let them throw foam balloons and shoot the confetti cannons. I’ll take it all for her.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, but I silence it.
A snowflake falls on my nose, and I pull Lennox to a stop in front of the house. “Wait,” I whisper, pointing to the cloud-covered sky.
She looks up as snow begins to fall around us. Tiny snowflakes drift silently to the earth, and the world is calm and quiet. She tilts her head back, enjoying the rare beauty of snow in Arizona.
The snow is nothing compared to the beauty in front of me. I brush the blonde strands back from her face and lean in to kiss her. I pause right before our lips touch.
