Page 24 of Kiss and Tell

He gave Remi a thumbs-up. “I’ll meet you at the barn.”

She nodded, said good night to everyone else, and walked inside.

Lucy handed Theo his car keys and he pocketed them, walking down a second lane that led to the farmhouse he shared with his brothers.

“I’ll pick my car up in the morning,” he told Lucy. “I need to walk this off.”

Miles had only had one beer the entire night, so she tossed him the keys to the farm use truck so they wouldn’t have to walk back in the dark. Neither he nor Miles climbed into the truck, walking her to the front door instead.

She stopped on the threshold. “I had a lot of fun tonight. Thank you for the dances.”

“You’re welcome.” Joey was aware of how closely the three of them were standing to each other, and because he was high on beer and hope, he decided there was no better time than the present to see if he could steer destiny in the right direction.

He cupped Lucy’s cheeks in his hands, bent forward, and kissed her the way he’d dreamed of since the first moment she’d stepped off this porch in those Doc Martens.

He heard her soft intake of breath, aware he’d surprised her. The shock wore off quickly, though, as her hands rose to his shoulders, her fingers stroking the sensitive skin around his ears, then slipping through his hair.

He ran his tongue along her lower lip, her mouth parting to allow him inside. Joey gripped her waist, his hands sliding beneath her long cardigan. He was sorely tempted to untuck her white tee, desperate to touch skin.

Her tongue danced with his for a full minute, the two of them sharing the same air.

Joey was finished questioning these feelings because he was a goner.

Lucy Storm had just claimed his heart.

Sign him up for the Love at First Sight club.

Call him the King of Instalove.

He was tempted to push her back against the door, to explore every luscious curve on her body, but he was hyperaware of the fact they weren’t alone. There may be two pairs of lips doing the locking, but there were three people kissing.

At least in his mind.

Joey dug deep and forced himself to break the kiss sooner than he wanted because he was so turned on. By Lucy’s soft lips and sweet sounds…as well as the fact that Miles was standing right there, next to them, watching.

He hadn’t walked away. He hadn’t even stepped back.

It was the one thing that had kept Joey kissing her.

Miles was in this, though he suspected his best friend didn’t realize it yet.

When the kiss ended, Joey gave her a quick wink that made her laugh softly. Together, they glanced over at Miles, who remained motionless for a moment.

Joey could read his best friend’s desire like it was written in jumbo neon letters. He could also see just as clearly the war Miles was waging in his own head.

Lucy blushed under Miles’s scrutiny. At first, Joey thought she was embarrassed for getting carried away in front of an audience, but then…

He looked more closely.

God.

Lucy was slowly closing the distance between her and Miles, issuing an unspoken invitation for him to claim his own kiss.

Joey silently willed Miles to move, to take what she was offering.

For the briefest of moments, he thought Miles was going to do it. Unfortunately, whatever battle he’d been fighting came to a conclusion.

The wrong conclusion.

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