Page 77 of Love on the Run

“He’s proposing!”

Good gravy, he was kneeling in front of Anna holding a ring between them.

When he turned back to Anna, her hand covered her mouth, trying to hide a mischievous smile.

Take the ring. Take the ring. Take the ring!

As soon as she removed her hand from her mouth, his stomach sank.

“Yes!”

Oh no. She was having the time of her life acting in front of a crowd, and he’d just gotten himself roped into it.

The entire restaurant erupted into cheers, and Anna sprang to her feet, practically jumping for joy.

Beau stood and pulled her close until they were nose to nose.

“What are you doing?” he whispered.

“Just having fun,” she said, giggling through every word.

Beau shook his head, but she was actually cutting through his walls with her joy. “You’re a menace.”

Chants pulsed around them. “Kiss her! Kiss her! Kiss her!”

The warm vanilla of her hair drew him in as he leaned closer. “Sounds like they want a show,” he said as the crowd chanted on.

Anna’s smile faded as she glanced down at his lips before looking back up to pin him with her blue eyes. “What do you want?”

That was the moment that all restraint flew out the window. Without even stopping to think, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pressed his mouth to hers.

Her hand slid around his neck as she melted into his arms. The restaurant erupted into a wild roar, but he heard everything through a fog. Nothingexisted except the woman in his arms. He kissed her madly, and she met each move match-for-match.

Someone behind him shouted, “Get a room!”

Remembering this was a family restaurant, he broke the kiss and blinked past the haze in his vision. Anna stared at him with a look that straddled the line between shock and terror.

Before he had a chance to freak out, she rose onto her toes and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

Everyone was clapping and whistling, but Beau was paralyzed. Had he just kissed Anna for the first time in front of dozens of people?

Shoot, the fact that he was thinking about it asthe first timewasn’t good. He already wanted more.

Anna held out her hand, and Beau slipped the ring onto her finger. She held it above her head for everyone to see.

It was all for show. They’d just played a whole room full of people, and Beau’s heart was about to tear out of his chest. He wasn’t proposing marriage, but what would it be like if Anna Harris really said yes to him?

Chapter 23

Anna

Beau reached for her hand as they walked out of the restaurant. A few of the other diners who’d witnessed the proposal clapped and whistled.

Anna snuggled to Beau’s side with his fingers locked firmly between each of hers. Leaning closer, she whispered against his shoulder, “I can’t believe we did that.”

“You did that. You can’t believeyoudid that,” Beau corrected, but there was a hint of laughter in his voice—one she’d never heard before.

The lobby was bustling even at the late hour, and Christmas music was a low background to the festive room. Families gathered around the grouped seats, a line of customers led to Mountain Mugs Coffee counter, and groups congregated at the front desk.

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