Page 48 of Just One Summer with the Grumpy

I rolled my eyes at the joke, but inside, my heart sprinted like a horse at the Kentucky Derby. This kind of thing happened in movies, not real life. Shouldn’t he be holding some blonde bombshell on a yacht with the wind blowing through her hair and a smirk, not a coworker with buttery popcorn breath and a still-bruised nose?

“I thought I was calling the shots now,” I told him, placing my hands on his chest and sliding them upward and around his hardened shoulders into an embrace. We’d danced in this exact position a few nights before, but for some reason, this time felt a zillion times more intimate.

Relief appeared in his expression at the gesture, and perhaps something more. Victory? He really hadn’t known whether I would reciprocate. The billionaire worried about what I would do, whatIwould say.

Zodiac, I need to have some words with you,I wanted to scream into the universe. Was this some kind of cruel joke? To dangle the perfect man in front of my face after telling me to be matched to another? To point out all the flaws of the man meant for me and then keep everything I really wanted just out of reach? The moment I admitted to Chase my motives here, it would all disappear.

And yet.

When I thought of Ty, my mind could hardly picture the face I thought I knew so well. The only man I saw, the only one who counted, stood right here in front of me—and he started to lean in for a kiss, right before my disbelieving eyes.

For the second time today, Chase stopped just before his lips reached mine. His face hovered so close, I could feel the warmth of his skin and inhale the rich, musky island scent of him. I wanted to bury my face in his neck, wind my fingers in his hair, press our lips together and take us to a whole new level of exploration.

“Your call.” His voice was so quiet the wind might have spoken it.

In that moment, I felt like two people—one who wanted to flee, and another who fought for control, screaming that I’d be stupid to ruin this and didn’t I know better than the universe what I wanted? Didn’t I deserve to seize happiness wherever I could find it? Wasn’t Chase worth any risk? A kiss didn’t mean marriage. It only meant two people found each other attractive.

So incredibly attractive. Chase was a massive chunk of magnetic metal, and I felt like a paper clip. The terrified part of me melted under the inevitable power of this man’s allure, and suddenly she was gone as if she’d never existed.

I grabbed his head and pulled his lips down to mine.

He stiffened in surprise, and I felt his mouth curve into a grin before his hands took hold of my waist and pulled me closer, right up against him.

Fireworks. A forest fire. Nuclear explosions. I couldn’t think of the right comparison for this. My kisses with Ty had been fun and addictive, but they didn’t pick me up, smash me into the ground, whirl me around, and melt me into a puddle like Chase’s did. My entire body shook at the wonder of it.

He must have felt it too, because he groaned and lifted his hand to cup my cheek, pressing me even closer. Our limbs tangled together, as his kiss somehow intensified from one hundred to a thousand and beyond. I didn’t know how my body remained standing. He probably held me up.

Finally, a millennia later, his kiss drew back into something more gentle, more tender. And then his lips pulled away, hovering just inches from my own, his eyes still closed.

“What did you do to me?” he asked softly, his voice rough.

I managed a soft chuckle. “I’d say I used my witch powers to seduce you, but my legs are shaking too badly to make that convincing.”

“I can carry you back to the car,” he said, wearing a wolfish grin.

As tempting as being cradled by him would feel at this moment, the thought of being horizontal right now, my body pressed against his in any form, seemed like a very bad idea. We’d already taken this so far…my brain spun in oxygen-deprived disbelief at the very thought of it.

I’d just made out with Chase Everett, and it was by far the most incredible, mind-blowing kiss of my life. No kiss would ever compare to that.

“I’ll float out of here under my own power, thank you very much.” I winked, and he laughed.

We started back along the trail toward the car. But before I could get far, I felt his hand close on mine, encompassing the entirety of it. It felt firm, sure, and warm, sending another wave of heat and desire shooting through my body.

He’s only holding your hand,I reminded myself, but it felt like downplaying a hurricane to a hailstorm.

Like it or not, Chase had taken control—and I no longer had any desire to fight it.

TWENTY-TWO

The next morning,I woke to a series of rapid knocks on my door. I stumbled in the darkness, unlocked the door, and peeked through the crack.

A hotel worker in a pristine white uniform peered back at me. “Breakfast, ma’am.”

I pulled the door open enough to take the tray from his hands, not comprehending. “I didn’t order breakfast.”

He shrugged. “You were on the list. I’m supposed to give you this too.” He placed a flower on the tray and hurried away.

A pink orchid, the same shade as Chase’s pink sand beach. I lifted the flower to my nose and drew in the slightest scent of fresh island air, smiling a bit as I thought about yesterday. Had that really happened?

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