Page 19 of The Temptation
Our food arrived shortly after, distracting me for a new reason. As the server placed Simon’s plate in front of him, I scowled at his salmon with broccoli.
“When did you start eating broccoli?” I demanded in a low voice.
“I didn’t,” Simon whispered back, his lips moving as though he were trying to hold in a smile.
“Why didn’t you swap the vegetable out for something else? I’m sure they would have made a change.”
Simon’s gaze darted to my parents, who were now watching our conversation. “It might have been because I was nervous about meeting your parents and I didn’t really pay that much attention to what I was ordering.”
My mother and father chuckled, breaking the tension, but I still wasn’t happy. There wasn’t a lot of food on Simon’s plate, and he’d said more than once that he wasn’t a huge fan of seafood but didn’t mind salmon.
“Here. I’ll take the broccoli,” I muttered, stabbing up the florets before he could argue. “You’ll take my potatoes.”
“But potatoes are your favorite. I can’t do that.”
“It’s fine. I don’t mind broccoli. You’ll have to share your potatoes with me on our next date.”
Simon snorted. “I dare you to steal a single french fry off my plate.”
After we finished our food swap, I lifted my eyes to find my parents staring at me with dazed and thoroughly amused looks on their faces. I had to replay the scene in my head to realize that the exchange had been very cozy. Too fucking cozy for a couple who’d only just begun dating.
It wasn’t my fault. I’d known Simon for years. Of course I was aware of what he liked and didn’t like to eat. There was noway I was going to make him suffer through eating something he didn’t like.
A soft pair of lips brushed my cheek, and I barely stopped myself from jumping out of my seat.
“Thank you so much. You’re too thoughtful,” Simon murmured, his hot breath caressing the spot where he’d kissed me, sending even more tingles through my body.
“Oh, you’re welcome,” I mumbled.
He wasn’t supposed to kiss me. Didn’t we set rules about that?
I couldn’t remember. I couldn’t remember anything right now. There was only the heat of his kiss burning my cheek and the smile on his pink lips as he sat next to me, eating his salmon.
What the hell had I done?
6
SIMON MILLER
I heldit together until Pierce’s happy parents disappeared into the lobby of their hotel and we turned to walk to the parking garage.
“Success!” I hissed, punching a fist into the air, not caring about the other pedestrians walking by us in the cold. The gray city had turned into a glittering diamond around me, and I was walking with a prince. Not only that, but I was certain that said prince’s parents liked me. They genuinely liked me. It would be one less thing to worry about in my conquest of Pierce’s heart.
Cars rushed down the damp street while the traffic lights ran through their cycles. Here and there, people hurried by, bundled up in winter coats. The temperature had been hanging close to freezing, and we’d recently had a very cold rain. The promise of snowfall hung in the forecast, but right now, none of that mattered. I was inching closer to claiming Pierce as mine.
“Yes, I agree. I think we convinced them we’re dating,” Pierce murmured. There was the hint of a grin on his lips, and even that was a win considering how he constantly glared at me. “Thank you so much for your help.”
“I think you should thank me with a kiss.”
That got the scowl to snap back into place. “There have been enough kisses.”
A huff broke from me. “Ugh. You can’t count that. It was barely a brush of my lips on your cheek.”
“That still fits the definition of a kiss,” Pierce argued.
“This is what I get for falling for a lawyer.”
His scowl disappeared, and one eyebrow rose as he looked down at me. “It surprises me how much you like to argue with me.”
