Page 73 of Meet Me at the Fudge Shop

“Because.” Lily started to draw away, slip from his grip. He should let her go. Shake off the water. The kiss. Clean up. Instead, he gave her hand a little squeeze and she froze. Looked up at him.

“That’s not a reason, Lil.”

Her lips were still parted, a delightful shade of pink on her cheeks and her hair mussed in the most bewitching way that he had to stop himself from running his fingers through it one more time.

But then she leaned toward him again. Let her hands fall on his chest before they slowly—agonizingly—made the trip upward to wrap around his neck.

And then he hoisted her up onto the counter, wrapped his arms around her, tilted her slightly back, and found himself kissing her again. Being kissed by her. The fascination of it—of Lily—thrilled his senses. It didn’t matter that their wet clothes clung to them, the chill burning against the heat of his skin. Didn’t matter that they didn’t have all the answers about how anything beyond this moment was going to work.

Kissing Lily Hart was coming home. Belonging. Where he was loved not for his successes but for himself.

He could drown in that.

The front door rattled open. “Lily? Are you here? I came as quickly as I could.”

Lily gasped and pushed at Declan’s chest. “Cody’s here.” Then she slipped from the counter, still standing in Declan’s embrace. “Back here,” she called to her brother.

Then Lily started to step away from Declan.

But before she could escape, he pressed his lips to her ear. “We are definitely going to talk about this later.”

Because the rules of the game had suddenly changed.

ChapterEleven

All day, the only thing Declan could think about was that kiss.

And his promise:We are definitely going to talk about this later.

Later hadn’t come last night, since Cody had stayed to help clean things up. He’d given Declan more than a once-over, his gaze wary. As if he knew what had happened. As if he knew how Declan felt about Lily.

Well, Declan was tired of holding it back.

And if Lily responded to the note he’d slipped her during their evening rush—if she came here, now—he was finally going to tell her.

I’m falling in love with you.

Of course he’d known it—maybe even weeks ago, but…

Yeah, that kiss had confirmed it. He could still feel her in his arms. Maybe had never forgotten really. But he couldn’t escape the feeling that shebelongedthere. And him, with her.

He glanced at his watch again. 9:06. She was late. But nottoolate. And Lily was known to lose track of time. That could be all her lateness meant.

Then again, maybelatein this case meantnot coming.

Huffing out a breath, he shifted the picnic basket from one hand to the other, scanning Blueberry Boulevard and the eastern end of Main Street from his spot in front of the Blueberry Hill Park sign. A couple stepped out of Doug’s Market across the road, and some tourists meandered down Main, but there was no sign of the lavender-haired beauty that had stolen his heart for the second time.

The sound of children’s giggles reached his ears from the playground, but there were fewer families inside the park now that the sun had almost made its descent for the day.

With his free hand, Declan pulled his phone from his back pocket, stared at his notifications—all emails, all trying to sell him something that would make his life better. But he didn’t need a coupon to Chicago’s finest restaurant, or the latest time-saving app, or a membership to the coolest gym.

He just needed Lily. Here, with him. Preferably in his arms again.

And then, like a vision, she appeared at the end of his line of sight. She was riding that pink bike down the cobblestone street, bouncing as she flew, the edges of her purple skirt fluttering with the movement.

She was wild and fierce and beautiful, his Lily.

Declan swallowed against the dryness in his throat, just watching her as she slid her bike to a stop in front of him, breathing hard. “I’m so sorry I’m late!” She dismounted and secured the bike into the rack. “I had a very chatty customer right there at the end.”

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