Page 28 of Honey Sunshine

As soon as our lips meet, all the tension melts away, leaving behind this burning fire consuming me in a whirlwind of both desire and lust. You’d think this was our first kiss.

Yeah, Becky’s books weren’t lying.

In fact, I could spend hours savoring every drop of him on my lips. His essence is pure bliss, a taste I never want to forget.

I really am fucked.

What makes this even worse is that I’m the one who suggested the entire façade of our relationship. I should have gone straight for the real deal from the beginning, but that would have made him wary of me. Who asks someone out on the first day they meet?

Zach is the one to break away first, his cheeks tinged with a red hue. The sparkle in his eyes is so dazzling that I lose myself in them for a second. It’s as if time slows down, allowing us to savor every second of this exhilarating moment. My niece’s joyful cheering only adds to the energy radiating off us, and I’m left baffled by the gnawing realization in the pit of my stomach; I don’t want this to end—whatever this is between Zach and me, I don’t want it to end.

After everyone laughs and playfully claps for our performance, the rest of dinner goes by without a hitch, and bythe end of the night, when it’s finally time to leave, I practically have to wrangle Zach out of Mom’s arms. I don’t know if I should laugh or tell everyone the truth of the situation when she adds him on all her social media, snaps probably a thousand photos of him, and even takes his number.

I breathe a sigh of relief once we get into the car.

“Your family sure is lively,” Zach laughs.

“If by lively you mean out to embarrass me to death,” I groan, resting my head against the seat.

“No, no, it wasn’t that bad.”

“Mom whipped out the baby-photo albums and VCR tapes right after dinner, when I specifically asked her not to. Then she talked about our wedding destination, and even invited you on our family trip next summer,” I deadpan, feeling the tips of my ears burning with embarrassment as Zach continues laughing. “It was absolutely the worst dinner ever!”

“I really did have fun. It was nice seeing your baby photos and what your childhood was like.”

“No. The only way to feel better is to drink away the pain,” I jest. “I think there’s a bar nearby.” I take the next turn in the direction of it.

“I’d take you drinking over bashing a bottle of whiskey over your head.”

“Which you started,” I remind him. “You... want to join me?”

“Yeah, it’s still too early to call it a night, so why not? I could go for a drink, fries, and nachos right now anyway.” He beams. “No. Buffalo wings! Oh, I’d die for some good wings right now.”

I chuckle just as the light turns green. “You weren’t kidding about your stomach being a black hole.” You’d think we’d starved him at dinner the way he goes on about wanting chicken wings.

“I don’t lie about these things,” Zach chuckles and then falls quiet for a moment. “And... if you noticed, I didn’t call you by your nicknames, so I think I deserve a reward for it. I want to collect that right now.”

“Oh, you sure didn’t,” I tease. “Good boy.”

He huffs, lightly pinching me on the thigh as I laugh. “And I think celebrations are in order.”

“Celebrate . . . seeing your baby photos?”

I snort. “No, your proposal. I heard back from my advisors and we’ve decided to go forward with it. I’d love to do business with you.”

Briefly looking away from the road, I can’t help but be captivated by the radiant joy that lights up his features.

“Really? I got the approval?”

Truthfully, he did on day one, but I selfishly wanted to spend more time with him.

“Yes, the finalized documents will be sent to you on Monday,” I add. “Congratulations, Honey.”

A blush blossoms across his face. “Now, with that look on your face, who’s the one not playing fair?”

I would give him the world if he asked for it.

5

---