Page 74 of Booked for the Holidays
He kisses my forehead, the bridge of my nose, the corner of my mouth. It’s slow and unhurried. Like he has nowhere else to be.
“Stay here tonight?” I whisper, my words muffled against his skin.
“Try and get rid of me,” he says, so soft and certain it twists something deep in my chest.
He curls his hand at my hip, his other brushing lazy circles on my back. I hum, sleep already pulling at the edges of me.
“I really like this,” I mumble, half-asleep now, the words slipping out before I can swallow them down.
He kisses my hair, his breath warm at my temple. “Me, too, Firefly. Me, too.”
And when his arms tighten around me, holding me safe and steady, I know that I can let myself believe it.
I drift off to sleep with his heartbeat beneath my ear and his name warm on my lips.
TWENTY-THREE
LIAM
I leaveJuniper tangled in the sheets, soft breaths drifting over her pillow, a pink flush still lingering on her skin as proof I didn’t dream any of it.
The kitchen smells like cinnamon spice from that little candle she likes to burn. Beck is perched on the counter, drinking straight from the orange juice carton and wearing my hoodie like he owns the place.
“You ever heard of a glass?” I mutter, grabbing a mug for coffee. “You’re like a wild animal sometimes.”
He shrugs, his eyes flicking to the faint bite mark on my collarbone from when Juniper lost her mind last night. Or maybe it was early this morning? Hard to say, since the night blurred between sleep-warm cuddling and those raw moments under the covers when I dropped below the sheets to taste her again. I couldn’t get enough of her skin or that sweet little sound she makes when she falls apart for me.
“I could say the same thing about you. You’ve got bite marks on your collarbone, yet you haven’t even asked the girl out on a proper date.”
I pause, coffee mid-pour. “What?”
“A date, Liam.” He grins, all fake innocence. “You know, hot cider, holding hands, romantic gestures that women love. The stuff normal people do before they…well—” he gestures vaguely at my neck,”—that.”
I’ve been wrapped up in helping Juniper at her store and getting the wine bar ready. I’ve only been playing defense. Reacting to the moments instead of creating them.
I’m an idiot and Beck is, unfortunately, here to witness it.
I pinch the bridge of my nose, already regretting letting him in the door. “Shit.”
Beck barks out a laugh. “You didn’t, did you? You’ve been so busy trying to make amends for last year, you forgot to start with the basics. Courtship. Romance. A date.”
Before I can tell him to shut up, the bedroom door creaks open, and a moment later Juniper appears in nothing but my shirt. Her hair is a mess, sleep still in her eyes. She’s the prettiest damn thing I’ve ever seen.
“Good morning.” She moves slowly toward the coffee machine. “Who forgot what?”
Beck lifts his juice like a toast. “Your boy here forgot to actually ask you out.”
Juniper’s brows shoot up, her mouth tugging into an amused little smile. “Oh, really?”
I drag a hand through my hair. “I was going to?—”
Beck cuts in. “When? After you two burn through her mattress?”
“Beck—” I grit out, but Juniper’s laughing now, hiding it behind her hand.
Juniper steps closer, tilting her head at me. “So? What did you have in mind?”
Good thing I’m used to thinking on my feet.
