But would I be renewing that crush I was trying to quash, once and for all?
His mesmerizing green eyes captured hers. She couldn’t look away, even if she’d wanted to. Ever so slowly, his head bent toward her. She imagined the tingle of his lips long before she felt their touch... light and airy... almost a tickle. No sooner had the feathery contact occurred than it receded.
She bit back a groan of frustration. All at once, her mouth had a fierce thirst only his lips could quench.
He dipped toward her ear, his warm breath sending zaps of electricity in every direction. “Is it okay to kiss you?”
Her mind shouted, “Yes, you idiot! Hurry up! What are you waiting for?!” But her vocal cords croaked, “Uh-huh.”
She moistened her lips with her tongue, anticipating his kiss at last. But instead, his sizzling mouth slid to the corner of her jaw and down to a spot beneath it that exploded fireworks under her eyelids.
He said something else she couldn’t hear because of the pulse drumming inside her ears. Then he shifted around, and warm fingers cradled the side of her face, delicious tremors radiating into her skin. His tormenting lips returned to sear a path up and across her cheek to the corner of her mouth, while the tender strokes of his fingers sent goosebumps rippling down her arms. A fire heated her core from the inside out, so intense it must’ve melted the snow beneath her.
At long last, his lips met hers, and her heart squeezed in her chest. Soft and gentle lips. Caring. Caressing. Tantalizing. Then he deepened the kiss, and she surged against him, kissing him back with the fervor borne of a sixteen-year famine. Like a glowing branding iron, his kiss sizzled and burned, from the tips of her toes to the end of her eyelashes, marking her as his own. Ruining her for any other man.
That’s okay. I can die happy. Liam Bennett just kissed me!
CHAPTER 12
LIAM
Liam barely tasted the guacamole, though he raved about its superiority, along with Bran and Fordham. Likewise, he spooned the poblano soup into his mouth, barely noticing the savory flavor.
How could he be aware of such mundane things as food and drink and breathing and the like, when Carly was sitting across from him? Carly and those luscious lips. Carly, who’d kissed him back with surprising passion. Carly, whose throat had made little hungry noises that accelerated his pulse to warp speed. Carly, whose eyes had regarded him afterward as if he’d given her his kidney when she was on the brink of death.
Everything about that kiss had been unexpected. He hadn’t planned it. And despite the dilation of her eyes and the sensual parting of her alluring lips, he’d fully expected her to refuse when he asked permission.
But what had stunned him most was the depth of emotion in her response. It had not been the kiss of a timid girl, nervous to take this intimate step with a man she barely knew. Rather, she seemed to relish the touch of their lips as if they were sharing their souls. The kiss she’d returned had heated him, drawing out something he hadn’t felt in years. A heat so permeating, he’d had to pull away, on the brink of losing control.
Surely, that kiss had tipped the balance. She couldn’t possibly deny their connection now. Could she? Yet throughout lunch, she hadn’t made eye contact.
“How was your sledding expedition?” Fordham patted his mouth with his napkin, having consumed an extraordinary amount of food for a man so trim and fit.
“Great!” Liam responded simultaneously with Carly’s, “Okay.”
“I think both of us had a really good time,” Liam said then added, “Right, Carly?” in a vain attempt to catch her gaze.
“It’s a great sledding hill.” Carly kept her gaze trained on the handle of the spoon with which she’d been steadily stirring her soup for the past ten minutes.
“One should never waste an opportunity to enjoy life,” said Fordham. “It’s easy to get caught up in your work while life passes you by.”
“And that, my friends,” said Bran with a grin, “is what I call a Fordham wisdom nugget.”
“If only you would act on my wisdom, Mr. Knight.” Fordham steepled his fingers under his chin. “Then we might not be hiring our tenth PA in as many months.”
Bran had mentioned his struggle to find a personal assistant he liked, but Liam hadn’t realized the extent of the problem.
“I can’t help that every PA I’ve hired has quit,” said Bran.
“Perhaps if you didn’t frighten them to death, they wouldn’t quit.” Fordham’s sarcasm flowed in his even tone.
“All I want is a PA who can do their job without making mistakes.” Bran smiled, clearly enjoying the battle.
“By your standards, anything that doesn’t please you is a mistake. And I can attest that pleasing you is impossible.”
Bran laughed. “And that, my friends, is Fordham firing his nuggets at me in an effort to take me down a notch.”
“I couldn’t care less about your notches,” said Fordham. “I’m attempting to preserve what’s left of my sanity. I have enough duties without adding those of your PA to my list.”
Carly put her spoon down and folded her napkin. “I have an idea for you, Fordham. I bet it will solve your PA-longevity problem. Maybe we can talk later, when the guys aren’t around.”
Bran groaned. “That’s all I need... to have you guys gang up on me. What do I have to do to get any respect around here?”
“As I have said on numerous occasions, I’m happy to retire when you are no longer satisfied with my services.” Fordham covered a loud, exaggerated yawn with his hand.
Liam wasn’t concerned about their teasing. Bran had told him Fordham was the closest thing he had to real family.
“If only Carly would take your place,” Bran said. “Then I could have her guacamole every day.”
“I’m glad you like it.” Carly gave Bran the smile Liam had been seeking. “I could make another batch tonight, if you want.”
“Definitely,” Bran said. “And another batch tomorrow.”
She grimaced. “I’m afraid I’ll be gone in the morning. The rental agency has a car for me. Fordham said the road will be cleared before sunrise, and he arranged a ride to the airport.”
Someone should’ve clued Fordham in on the plan to delay Carly’s departure as long as possible.
“Let me accompany you back to your apartment, Carly.” Fordham’s chair legs scraped against the tile as he stood up. “You can tell me your idea for Bran’s PA, and we can discuss that other matter we talked about earlier.”
She paled at his cryptic statement but folded her napkin and followed him out, not once looking directly at Liam.
