Page 11 of Like Bees to Honey
Mags nodded. “Good. How about you try...enjoying yourself.”
“You don’t think I’m being ridiculous?” Camellia instantly regretted asking.
Mags took a deep breath, her face clearing as she seemed to mull over her answer. “No.”
Camellia blinked. “No?” She’d been expecting Mags to tell her she was absolutely, irrefutably, ridiculous.
“No.” Her sister smoothed a hand over her hair. “Thisman, for whatever reason, has caught your eye. That means something, I suppose. You’d be ridiculous if you ignored it. No one wants to be alone, Camellia. Well, except for maybe me.”
“But you have Shelby. And baby Bea.” Camellia saw the hint of sadness in her sister’s eyes. “And me. And Tansy and Astrid and Rosemary.”
“That’s all well and good, but you know what I mean.” Mags gave her another head-to-toe inspection. “If you want a man in your life, I say go for it. Apparently, you’ve got them lining up and waiting. Like bees to honey.”
Camellia had to laugh at the imagery.
“But don’t you dare set yourself up for that sort of heartache again, Camellia, or I’ll wind up in prison for offing the bastard that breaks your heart.”
Camellia knew her sister was referring to her breakup with Harald. It had been a nightmare. And Mags had carried her through it. She hugged Mags close. Her big sister wasn’t normally a fan of physical affection so Camellia reveled in her sister’s tight embrace. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Mags released her.
The steady knock on the front door had them both frozen, staring at each other with wide eyes—before they burst into laughter.
“Come on.” Mags grabbed her hand and pulled her across the landing and down the stairs.
Mags was right. About all of it. This was what she wanted.Hemight be everything she wanted. There was only one way to find out. Tonight, was about starting something new and good and full of promise.No looking back.
She was fully aware of the audience gathered around the base of the stairs. The girls were there, all smiles. When Dane and Leif had arrived, she didn’t know but it wasn’t altogether a surprise.
The moment her eyes locked with her handsome date’s, however, she was in for a surprise. He looked at her with such pride that Camellia was awestruck. He was proud of her, to be with her, and when his hand took hers—it shook just enough to reassure her she wasn’t the only one suffering from nerves.
Neither one of them said a thing. She had so much she wanted to say to him, but she had no idea where to start. They had time, though. There was no need to rush.
“Have fun,” Mags said, holding the front door open.
She didn’t remember saying goodbye to anyone, only that—somehow—they ended up on the front porch. Alone.
“You look beautiful.” He shook his head. “So beautiful.”
“Thank you,” she whispered. “You’re looking pretty handsome yourself.”
His gaze fell to their hands and he smiled, as warm as ever. He didn’t let go of her as they walked down the steps and along the flagstone path to the gate. “I thought we’d go down to the lake, have a picnic and watch the fireflies. If that’s all right with you?”
“It sounds perfect.” She squeezed his hand. “If you don’t change your mind by the end of the night, maybe you’d like to join us for Sunday dinner? The roast beef was your idea, after all.”
He came to a stop, his brown gaze sweeping slowly over her face to linger, most assuredly, on her mouth. “Change my mind? My mind was made up—five or so years ago.” Van Kettner shook his head. “I couldn’t change my mind, or my heart, even if I wanted to, Camellia. And I don’t want to.”
Camellia was too breathless to come up with a suitable response, until, “Does that mean you’ve been wanting to kiss me for half a decade?”
“Give or take a year.” He nodded, smiling.
“Oh.” She stepped forward and stood on tiptoe, placing her hands on his chest to steady herself. Beneath her palms, she could feel his heart thundering against his chest—echoing the beat of her own. But that was forgotten when he bent and brushed his lips against hers.
Oh.
Firm and gentle. But as his arms wrapped around her and those big, strong hands pressed her closer, his kiss deepened and Camellia was clinging to him to stay upright. When his head lifted, she was pleased to see he was just as dazed as she felt. “Oh,” she murmured again, still holding on to him. “Good gracious.”
“I’d say so.” His voice was oh so tender as he ran his fingers along the curve of her cheek. “I only wish I’d asked five years ago.”
