Page 46 of How to Write a Rom-Com

“Your aunt didn’t agree?”

“Hmm,” I muse, thinking about Josie’s animated rants about my lifestyle. “She just wanted me to consider my options, I guess. I’ve always had a bit of a one-track mind.”

“I can’t imagine,” Liam prods. I grimace at him.

“She’s pretty much the same way,” I add. Josie spends so much time telling me to enjoy life and embrace this opportunity in Hudson Hollow, but she’s the one gallivanting all over Europe, and look where that’s gotten her. I rest my head on my hand, thinking about my exotic aunt, and how much I wish I could hug her right now.

“She’s going to be okay,” Liam says, putting his hand on my leg. He squeezes my knee. I smile and nod. She will. I’ll see her soon. But in the meantime, I have this gorgeous man sitting in front of me, admiring me like a painting. He keeps staring, his face serene and curious.

“What?” I finally ask, as his eyes continue to move across my face. He reaches out and traces a line with his finger from my temple to my chin. I gasp quietly at his touch and let my eyes flutter closed. A satisfied sigh escapes my lips. Even if it’s just this once, I let myself fall into his touch. I let myself be held by him. And I love it.

And then his lips are pressing into mine.

I don’t jump in surprise. I don’t gasp. I don’t shudder. Because I’m not shocked. It’s as if he read my mind. This moment was inevitable between us. An understanding.

“I can’t tell you how long I’ve been thinking about this moment. About learning what you taste like,” he murmurs against my lips. He presses his lips to mine again, gently at first, and then more hungrily, like he truly is tasting something delicious for the first time. I gasp against his mouth, relishing the feeling of his fingers threading through my hair, pulling me into him with delicate urgency.

Kissing Liam is like taking a deep breath after being stuck underwater. It’s like the first gasp of air after you’ve been tossed around by an ocean wave, the oxygen filling your lungs in a way that you never thought you’d feel again.

I let my hands trail up his back and I wrap my arms around his neck. In one smooth motion he lifts me up and places me in his lap, so I’m pressed between his chest and the back of the counter.

I can’t believe this is happening. It feels so natural, Liam kissing me, holding me. I’m trying desperately to silence the part of my brain that is sounding every alarm bell.

He shifts my weight and suddenly I’m straddling him, feeling his hardness beneath his shorts. The feeling sends a wave of wanting through me. I haven’t done this in so long. I forgot how good it can feel. I forgot what it was like to want someone this badly.

I kiss him harder as his hands reach under my shirt, his fingers exploring my torso, his thumbs tracing the bottom of my bra. I dig into his hair, deepening our kiss, and pressing my tongue into his mouth. Liam groans and responds quickly, sitting up so my back is arched into the counter. I reach for the bottom of my shirt and start to lift it up, but Liam grabs my wrists and stops me.

“I’m sorry,” he says, inhaling sharply as he leans his forehead against mine. “I quite literally couldn’t help myself. I’ve been wanting to do that all day.”

“Then why did you stop?” I whisper, desperate to get that feeling back, the satisfaction of his arms around me, the comfort of being held by him, so tightly.

Liam sits back and studies my face. He pushes some stray strands of hair out of my face and tucks them behind my ear. Why is that move so heart-meltingly amazing? Why?

“Because you’re hurting right now,” he says, his voice aching.

I let myself fall back against the counter, running my fingers through my hair. I can feel the heat in my face—am I embarrassed? I don’t really have anything to feel ashamed of, we were both pretty into that kiss. But I still feel self-conscious about how far I was willing to go just now. Just today I said I needed to focus on my work here, and not get distracted.

That was a whole lot of distraction right there.

“You’re right,” I say, struggling to believe my own words. Because I don’t. He’s not taking advantage. I am hurting, but every second I spend with him makes me feel exponentially better.

Chapter Fifteen

If you had the chance to live inside of a romance novel, would you take it?

I’m sure most of you would, considering you’re loyal romance readers. As you all know, I’m off doing a super special project for @HeartwarmingRomance and I wish I could tell you all about it. And it has me thinking… what if one of my favorite small-town romances could actually come to life?

What #romancebook would you want to live in? Let me know in the comments!

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Operation Small Town, Day 25

“Lucy, I’m so sorry, babe,” Elle says softly on the other end of FaceTime. She lays her chin in her hand and tilts her head at me. If I was in a better mood, I’d crack a joke about the stereotypical pity head-nod she’s giving me, but I let the moment pass. “But it sounds like she’s going to be okay.”

I spoke to Josie on the phone briefly this morning. Her voice was weak but she was complaining about the “sorry excuse for breakfast” they fed her, which gave me a bit of hope that she must be feeling better. My mom is headed to London tonight.

“I know. I can’t wait for her to get here,” I say, plopping down on the couch. I raise my fingers to my mouth, gnawing on the edge of my thumb. “Counting down the days.”

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