Page 22 of The Fear
“You are just not making sense. You are just asgoodas they are; of course you are. Well, maybe not Gunn. But I do think that twin of yours is too goody-goody for anyone on the planet other than Ayla. But…doesn’t he drive you a little insane sometimes? Be honest. Chantal once threatened to do a naked pole dance on your kitchen island just to see how he’d react. I really think she meant it—since she was halfway up there at the time, and mostof her shirt was unbuttoned before Gia got her down. Since you guys were all coming in and we could see you from the window and everything.”
His brother was one of the most good-hearted people he knew.Thatwas the kind of man Hala deserved. “Yeah, more than you know.”
“Seriously, what makes you think you’re not as good as the rest of them?” She rested her head against his shoulder for a moment. As if they hadn’t just been kissing hot enough to set the barn on fire. “You are, you know.”
He just wanted to breathe her in. She felt so…perfect…in his arms like this. “I’m just…not. But I sure like holding you. Discovered that this morning and everything.”
“I think you are just fine. Better than most other men out there I’ve met, that’s for sure. Even when you are completely driving me crazy. I think you do that on purpose, though. I’m almost sure of it. I like it when you hold me, too. But…you are going to forget I said that as soon as we leave this barn. Because I don’t want you think I’m getting anyideasabout you, you know. Or think I cooked this up with your mother, or anything silly like that.” She leaned back, shot him a perfectHalagrin. But her cheeks were red. She was nervous of him. But she wasn’t backing away. “That wholenot future darling husbandthing we have already discussed.”
What she’d said sank in. Completely.
That was all it took.
Hell, in that moment, he becamehersforever.
Grady knew it. She captured him, heart and soul.I like it when you hold me, too.
There had never been more powerful words said to him. Especially by a woman.
If she would just let him, he would hold her forever.
He dropped his hands to her waist. He lifted. Until they were pressed as close as they could get. “Kiss me again, then. I like it when you do that. Then we have to get back out there, before that mountain-sized big brother of yours comes looking for you and catches us in here. He’ll know exactly what I’ve been up to, and he scares me.”
Her arms tightened around his neck and she leaned forward. “This…this is insane.”
Well, he agreed with her there.
Grady met her halfway. This was definitely the craziest thing he had ever done, but he just didn’t care.
All Grady wanted…was her. “You deserve so much better thanme.But I’ll be damned if I can resist you. I never want to let you go.”
He kissed her, just like he’d been imagining for hours.
15
Oh,that man. That silly, silly man.
Hala had finally figured it out. What he’d meant. As soon as he wandered off to do whatever it was Grady-type characters did at barbecues. After they’d heard Gia and Hudson outside, her head had cleared instantly, and it finally made sense.
Grady…doubted himself in some way.
He thought he wasn’t as good as his brothers, especially that twin of his—who, Hala had to be honest, was waytoogoody-goody even for Hala—and it was having a real impact on him.
He’d apologized, telling her if she didn’t want him to kiss her again, to kick him.
Well, of course she wasn’t going to do that. She wanted him to kiss her again, and she wanted to kiss him back, too.
This felt so…new, exciting, a little weird…And very, very concerning.
Not the kissing part. But that man, that beautiful, wonderful man…was really hurting. He’d meant it.
He didn’t think he was as good a man as his brothers. And that was just insane. The man needed serious reprogramming.And she wasn’t about to let some other woman be the one to do that reprogramming.
Nope. If any woman on the planet was reprogramming that man, it wasdefinitelygoing to be her. No other woman would see him the way she did, that was for sure.
It hurt her that he didn’t see himself for the man he actually was. He was one of the best men she had ever met. Why didn’t he see that?
The idea that her words that night he’d thought his mother was plotting against them all might have contributed to this? Well, she just couldn’t sit there and do nothing about that. Hala had to make it right somehow.
