Page 51 of Attached At Heart
Fuck, he’d been doing so good at this whole fake husband thing, and this was an awfully annoying moment for him to suddenly forget how to act.
I groaned.
“What?”
I shook my head. “Nothing. You’re just looking at me like you always look at me.”
Blake heaved a sigh. “Delaney?—”
“Maybe the occasion calls for it,” I blurted before I had a second to think about what I was saying.
He stilled. “You want me to kiss you?”
“Just a little.”
“You want me to kiss you…just a little.”
“Yeah, like just a peck or something. It is mydad.” I was talking at the speed of light at this point, but I needed him to understand. “But he doesn’t know we’re married, and I’m surehe isn’t going to believe it when I tell him in like two minutes, considering we weren’t evendat?—”
“Okay, Lane,” Blake hushed me, forcing me to relax with his assuring tone. “Just a peck.”
I nodded, trying to press myself closer to him, even though it wasn’t really possible. I could already feel the beat of Blake’s heart pounding against my chest. It was unusually quick, but then again, I’d suddenly put a lot of pressure on him to make believe in front of my dad when he’d never even met the man before, so I suppose that was warranted.
Blake cupped my cheek and bent his head, lowering his mouth so it was just a breath away. But then he hesitated, and now my heart had quickened its pace, too. I tried to tell myself that it was the circumstances, the ones I’d put us in, but I knew it was the anticipation, the excitement to feel the brush of Blake’s lips again, to test whether the kiss at our wedding had been a fluke or if it was something that could be standard for us. A spark that was real behind the pretense of something fake.
My eyes fluttered shut as Blake’s thumb caressed my cheek, like he was coaxing me into this kiss even though it had been my idea. I circled my arms around his neck, tugging him closer. So close I could feel his uneven breathing. So close I could feel his lips move as he cursed beneath his breath. So close I could feel my name when he murmured it against my mouth.
Was it this painful for him to just give me a peck on the lips?
Had he actuallyhatedour first kiss, and I hadn’t even realized?
“Delaney?”
My name sounded again in my brain, but it took me a second to place it. Because for a moment, Blake had encompassed my entire world. And I’d forgotten that my dad was even here, in this room. Or that anyone was in this room, honestly.
Blake ripped his mouth away before our lips even had a chance to touch, and the feeling that tore through me was indescribable.
“Dad,” I said breathlessly as I turned, wondering if it was noticeable how hot my cheeks were. Blake’s hand had dropped to his side, but he still kept one arm around my back as we both faced the man who had, supposedly, raised me.
“I’ve been looking for you,” my dad said, coming to my side to pull me away from Blake and into an awkward, one-armed hug.
“I hadn’t been looking for you,” I replied honestly. “I didn’t know you were going to be here.”
My dad took a step back again, and his brows knitted together. “Didn’t I send over an email about it? I could have sworn I did.”
I shook my head and then tried not to roll my eyes. Because what father communicated with his daughter via email?
“Not that I saw.”
I had a better relationship with my dad than my mom. He didn’t pressure me the way she did growing up, but he also didn’t stand up to her when she treated me like her plaything, and I’d never quite forget or forgive that. He just didn’t care enough. Wasn’t around enough. Couldn’t be bothered to intervene and show up when it mattered.
This was the only time he’d cared about my work, and he’d forgotten that I was even involved in it.
“Huh.” Seeming stumped by that and not sure what else to say, my dad turned his attention to Blake. His eyes narrowed as they looked him up and down. “And who do we have here?”
“Dad, this is Dr. Blake London.”
“Ah,” my dad said in an assessing, judgmental sort of way, even as he stuck his hand out for Blake to shake. “Another doctor, huh?”
