Page 35 of In this Moment

He took a sip of his wine. “You don’t need to thank me, Evie.”

“I don’t need to thank you?” She leaned forward and put her arms on her legs. “Are you crazy? Of course I need to thank you. In fact, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank you enough. I mean, what you’re doing for me…” Her words trailed off and she dropped herhead.

“Evie?”

She shook her head and wouldn’t lookup.

Dammit. Was she crying? He wanted to make her giggle. He wanted to make her smile. And laugh. Not cry. The last thing he ever wanted to do was make her cry. Declan put his wine down and moved quickly around the fire pit. He put his hand on her shoulders and pulled her to her feet and right into hisarms.

Damn, she felt good in his arms. He dropped his head and inhaled the sweet scent ofher.

“Evie, look at me.” When she still wouldn’t look up, he tried again. “Please. Look at me, sweetheart.”

She looked up then. A tiny tear glimmered on her cheek. He wiped it away quickly and because it felt right, pressed his lips gently to hers. It was a soft kiss at first. Just enough to keep her from crying anymore.

He’d never kissed her without an audience watching their performance. This was different. It wasreal.

She reached up and threaded her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, and the kiss deepened.

A small sound escaped her lips and all of a sudden he had a new favorite sound. Everything this woman did just made him want more fromher.

Declan didn’t know how long they stood there locked in embrace, lips exploring each other, but it wasn’t long enough when she pulled back and tentatively touched her fingers to her lips. “I didn’t…I wasn’t…thatwas…”

“Perfect,” he finished for her. “It was perfect.”

She blushed, but her smile told him she absolutely agreed with him. There was no way she couldn’t because that’s exactly what that kiss had been. Perfect.

More so because they hadn’t been performing for anyone. That kiss wasn’t for anyone but them. And damn, if he didn’t want to do it again.

“Can you promise me something?” He waited until she nodded before continuing. “Don’t thank me again.” Before she could protest, he kissed her again. Harder this time. “I’m here because I want tobe.”

Evie wanted to be there, too. In fact, there was nowhere else she’d rather be than sitting around the campfire, snuggled up with Declan’s arm around her. It felt natural. And when she looked down at her left hand and the way the diamond sparkled in the campfire light, she could almost believe she really was Declan’s fiancée.

How would thatfeel?

It would feel exactly like it was feeling at that moment.

Perfect.

Evie tipped her head up to the stars and snuggled a little closer to Declan. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.” He stroked her hair lightly, tucking it behind herear.

“Were you ever going to ask me out?” She wasn’t sure whether it was the wine or the cover of darkness or what it was that had emboldened her, but the question just slippedout.

Evie could feel the rumble in his chest as he chuckled. “Honestly?”

“Of course.”

“I wantedto.”

“But you weren’t goingto.”

“No.”

She spun in his arms and looked him in the eyes the best she could in the firelight. “Why not?” she demanded.

He didn’t answer right away, so she added, “Honesty, remember?”

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