Page 44 of The Run Option

Soleil gasps. “You look like a Victoria’s Secret Angel.”

My face flames. Of all the people to compare me to, shehadto choose an underwear model? I’m sure it’s meant to boost myconfidence, but I feel more awkward than ever since Jason also heard her say that.

“Now, Jason, go and put one hand above your bride’s head,” Soleil instructs.

My heart stops. I turn my head in time to see Jason stalking toward me. He plants his right hand above my head while his left settles on my waist.

“Absolute perfection, you two. Now get nice and close. Willow, grab your man like he’s yours!” Soleil’s instructions make my stomach somersault.

Jason presses closer to me, his body fitted against mine, my left leg hitched up to his waist. I lay my hands on his lapels, too unsure to grab him the way Soleil said to.

“Lo, look at me.” Jason’s voice is like a caress, and it sends chills down my spine.

I slowly lift my gaze. His green eyes are darker than usual, his gaze intense.

“Are you okay? If this is too much, I can tell her we want to do something more subdued. I’m not sure our friends will believe that I’m not big on PDA, but she doesn’t know that.” His smile is boyish and playful. It helps me relax a little to hear him tease like he usually does.

“Is it too much for you? I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.” I’m deflecting, and the raise of his brow says he knows it.

“I could do a whole lot more, but only if you wanted to.”

A dangerous, reckless feeling overtakes me. “Like?”

My one-word question falls between us like a lit match. Jason’s hand slides from my waist, trailing fire over my hip, then my thigh. He grips my leg and presses closer, dipping his head to whisper in my ear. “Like that.”

His warm breath against my neck has my toes curling, and I involuntarily tighten my grip on his suit jacket. I can feel him smirking. The need to catch him off guard overtakes me. He’salways making me blush. For once I want him to feel the way I do.

I hook my leg around him and pull him until we’re nose to nose, every inch of us pressed together except our lips.

“More like that,” I whisper.

His pupils are dilated, his lips slightly parted. We’re sharing the same breath, and I wonder what it would feel like if I closed the centimeters between us and pressed my mouth to his. His tongue flicks out, wetting his lips. My breath catches.

“You two are h-o-t, hot!” Soleil says, making me pull my head back. The reality of the moment comes crashing over me like a bucket of ice water. “I want to get a few more shots down here on the first floor, then we’re going to get you two hitched!”

Much too slowly, Jason releases my leg and pulls away from me, his eyes not leaving mine the entire time. He holds out his hand, palm up. I take it, my skin tingling.

What just happened?

Chapter twenty

Jason Kingsley

This can’t be real.I glance over at Willow. She’s looking at the various bushes in the rose garden we’re walking through, a small smile on her pink lips. I feel the way I did when I was a little kid and fell asleep in the car only to wake up in my bed at home. I missed all the steps that brought me to this exact moment, and now I’m disoriented and unsure.

Talking to Willow through the bathroom door made sense to me. She was hesitant and scared, as was I. But our rendezvous on the stairs? That…was different.

Willow turns her attention back to me, offering me a shy smile. My lips turn up in response, but I can’t manage my normal, easygoing grin when I know where we’re headed.

In a few short moments, we’ll bemarried. We’ll share a last name, bank account, and my home. What’s mine will be hers, and what’s hers will be–well, probably still hers. A pang of uncertainty threads through me. Over this past year I’ve dreamt of settling down. I've wanted to fill my empty farmhouse with a wife, babies, and animals. I've wanted to laugh as the single guyson the team teased me for rushing out of practice and games to get home, tell them they’d understand one day.

The way I imagined this day would be is much different than it is now, though it hasn’t been too bad. My core heats as I think of the little stunt Willow pulled earlier. She’s unbelievably gorgeous, and sexy beyond comprehension. I wanted to claim her mouth with my own and show her how I really felt about our bodies being pressed together on the stairs.

Willow squeezes my hand. I look down at her. “This is the spot, right?” she asks. I look up to find we’re standing beneath an ivy-covered arbor in the middle of the rose garden.

“Yeah, this is the spot.” I crane my neck and spot Augustus, the officiant I hired, and Soleil coming up the path.

The feeling of a soft hand on my cheek has me looking down at Willow.

---