Page 128 of Ice Princess

For a split second, I debate starting the car and speeding away again, but his eyes bore through the glass like a fist reaching through the air and choking me. There might as well not be a thick glass between us. He might as well be right here in the car with me, making my knees wobble from up close.

Like a coward, I drop the window a smidge. “What?”

“Get out of the car, Rebel.”

“Don’t tell me what to do,” I grumble.

“Please get out of the car,” he grinds out.

It still sounds like he’s ordering me, but I give him points for saying please and ease the car door open. However, when I try to hop down, I realize that one foot is bare and I curl my toes in embarrassment.

Without a word, Gunner grips my upper arm, slips his hand beneath my knees and scoops me out of the car. He carries me to the thick wooden fence bordering the Kinsey acreage and plops me down on top of it.

I glare at him. “Rude much?”

“Rude is running away when a man confesses his feelings for you.”

My heart does another running kick at my ribs, but I force myself to remain calm. “I… left my solder iron on.”

He gives me a disbelieving look.

“I wasn’t running away,” I insist.

He holds up my abandoned shoe. “You even forgot your glass slipper, princess.”

Gunner Kinsey should never be allowed to call a woman ‘princess’ in that deep, velvety voice of his. I should call his father and have him arrested.

“And you missed the rest of what I wanted to say,” he adds.

I swallow hard. “There was more?”

Gunner bends down and slides my slipper on again. “I wasn’t happy about it. I didn’t want to like you.”

His words take me by surprise and I jerk back.

“In fact, I wish I had feelings for anyonebutyou.”

I scoff and hop off the fence. “Sorry I’m such a burden, Kinsey. How about I just leave?—”

He wraps his fingers around my wrist to stop me. “Because I never in a million years thought I’d get the chance to be with you.”

I spin around slowly.

“I’m not the best at explaining how I feel. The words always come out wrong so I’m going to shut up after I ask you one question.”

To my surprise, Gunner takes out a velvet box from his pocket and cracks it open. I glance at him and then at the pinkbox in shock. Inside is a beautiful, gold necklace with a pink gemstone at the center.

“Rebel Hart,” Gunner says, “will you be my girlfriend?”

My heart is training for a flash sale at my favorite boutique because it’s doing all kinds of flips and one-armed handstands.

“I…” My eyelashes flutter and I look up at him in shock, “aren’t I already?”

A corner of Gunner’s lips hitches up. “Then I guess you don’t need this.” He snaps the pink box closed.

“Yes,yes, I’ll be your girlfriend, Gunner.”

He scrunches his nose. “Are you only saying that because of the necklace?”

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