Page 30 of Ricochet

“No.”

He eased her away from him and held their hands up, motioning her to spin slowly beforehe pulled her close again. “Then what?”

“This.”

The boyish smile from earlier made another appearance.

“Why have I never seen that before?”

“What?”

“That smile.”

“I smile.”

“Not like that,” she pointed out, mesmerized by its lulling sweetness. “I like it, and it’s different.”

“Then it’s yours.” The corners of his eyes crinkled the faintest bit when his eyes narrowed as if he wanted tomemorize the next few seconds.

Her pulse quickened. “Have you ever felt like your sense of gravity just shifted, but… you can finally take a breath you didn’t know you were holding?”

He stopped dancing and stared. “Yeah.”

Anxious butterflies stormed in her stomach. She couldn’t shield herself from his intense focus, and an alarmed blush rushed up her neck. This flirtation seemed good, specialeven, and not driven by the lewdness and gossip that drove her to avoid. She wanted him to touch and tease her, to kiss her in the most stirring of ways she’d ever imagined, and that was terrifying… Intimidating at the very least.

Adelia broke their hold, hoping to catch Victoria in her peripheral vision, but saw no one to use as an excuse. “I need to get some air.”

“Adelia?” His concern registeredabove the wedding din, but it thundered in her ears with low gravel and heavy vibration. “Adelia.” Colin grasped her hand, holding the puzzle piece firmly between their palms. “Did I offend you?”

Did he offend me?She nearly snort-laughed at the irony. “God, no!”

His cut jaw ticked but his feet didn’t move an inch, and why she expected him to grab and shake her, she had no idea. Tex would killhim or would die trying. Colin had never once acted in the way she suddenly braced for.

“What’s going on?”

“I think,” she whispered, “I’m having a sudden moment where I realize that my expectation of men has been totally screwed up.”

His eyebrow inched higher. “You know a couple high quality guys in my opinion. Ryder. Jax—”

“They don’t count.” Her mind whirled as she tried to place why theywere different, how Tex had tried to assert a system to choose her partners to protect her, and how she, to safeguard herself, had stonewalled the male species under the general guise of disinterest.

She buried her face in her hands and willed her mind to pull it together until she could save a nervous breakdown for a secluded location.

“What’s the matter,” he asked in a hushed whisper, stillnot stepping a foot closer.

That space he gave her… She noted it, appreciated it. Hell, Adelia needed it until she didn’t, and with more strength than she expected, she pried her palms from her cheeks. “It’s just.” Her fingers trembled, and she hid them in the fabric of her skirt, not courageous enough to glance around to see if anyone had noticed how she’d nearly brought herself to tears. “Forme, tonight has been intense and beautiful. Special. And very different. I’m not used to you—or anyone—acting like that.”

An endearing smile turned the corners of his lips. “I like to think I’m one of a kind.”

She’d laughed, not expecting any humor.

“I’ve enjoyed everything about tonight.” He extended his hand as he had at the table, patiently waiting. “Let’s get out of here.”

The good humordied at his suggestion to leave, and slivers of ice cooled her blood even further. Disappointment did too. He wanted to leave? She was wrong about him. Everything revolved around sex. Colin was just like all the others.

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