Page 86 of Slow Burn
ADAM
I drew in a deep breath. Held it for a few seconds. Then slowly released it through my nose. My heart was pounding wildly, furiously trying to escape the confines of my chest. Even my palms were sweaty.
About a million ants crawled over my skin while I was acutely aware of all the eyes on me. It'd taken every ounce of willpower I had to walk through the doors and search the crowd for Maddie.
There were a thousand things I'd wanted to say to her. Hell, I'd even rehearsed this wonderful speech on the way over. But now that she was standing in front of me, looking like my every dream come true, the words remained trapped on my tongue.
Not that she was doing any moving or talking either. With her eyes taking up half of her face and her hands covering the rest, she was staring at me like she couldn't decide whether I was real or not.
My throat felt impossibly thick as I tried to work down a swallow. Slowly, I parted my lips to speak but before I could utter a single word, an older man with thick gray brows pulled tightly appeared at Maddie's side.
I didn't need to ask how I'd missed him in the first place. The instant I'd spotted her, Maddie had been the only person in the room to have my full attention. Shifting my gaze to the man, it only took a few moments to see the resemblance.
Eyes that looked so much like his daughter's looked me up and down before he thrust his hand toward me. "Fraser Young. And this here is my lovely wife, Carolynn."
Straightening my spine, I pressed my palm against his. "Adam Carlisle. A pleasure to meet you, sir." I traded his hand for his wife's. "Happy Birthday, Mrs. Young. It's good to meet you."
Touching her free hand to the edges of her shoulder-length hair, Maddie's mom graced me with a sweet smile. "Thank you." Gently pulling her hand from mine, she turned to her husband. "Come on, dear, I want to show you the lovely cupcakes Franchesca made."
Mr. Young looked at his wife like she had a third eye. "Didn't you just—"
"Fraser," Mrs. Young said sternly, eyes not-so-subtly bouncing between Maddie and me. "Come look at the cupcakes with me."
She didn't really give him the chance to respond before she slipped her hand in his. "So lovely to meet you, Adam." And then she was off, dragging a grumbling Mr. Young behind her.
My gaze followed them for a bit before slowly shifting back to Maddie. Eyes wide, she was still staring atme. So damn beautiful. All I wanted to do was take her in my arms and never let go.
But I probably needed to say something first. "Hi."
Pulling her hands away from her lips, she slowly started shaking her head. "You're here." It was barely above a whisper. "I can't believe you're here." Her hand was trembling slightly when she lifted it to tuck a few strands behind her ear.
Fighting the need to reach for her, to slip my fingers through hers, was almost impossible. It was like my body knew it needed her to stay sane.
"Neither can I."
Although, from the moment I'd figured out what I had to do to make it right between us, not coming hadn't even been an option. Even if it was the last thing I ever did. Yes, it felt like the scariest, most daunting thing I could possibly do, but I'd happily do it ten times over forher.
I took a small step forward. "You look stunning." At my compliment, she bowed her head and smoothed her hands over the front of her pretty dress. I couldn't hold back anymore, I needed to touch her. To feel some part of her. I tucked my fingers beneath her chin and gently guided her gaze back to mine. "I'm sorry, Maddie. So damn sorry."
My hand moved to cup her satiny cheek and her eyes immediately fell shut as she pressed into my touch. When her lids slowly parted again, the sadness shining in her eyes felt like a slap to the balls.
I'd put it there and I sure as shit was going to do whatever the hell I could to take it away again. Before I could tell her that, she pulled my hand from her face and stepped closer. The space between us was so little, I could've easily bent down and touched my lips to hers.
And damn it, that's exactly what I wanted to do.
"There's a gazebo outside," she said softly. "It's not completely private, but it's a lot less crowded than in here."
My heart almost couldn't handle her words, the thoughtfulness behind them. Stooping, I looked straight into her beautiful eyes. "I'm good exactly where I am."
With her gaze frantically searching mine, Maddie's tongue darted out and slicked over her bottom lip. "I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that. It was very unfair of me." Her breathing picked up and she shook her head. "I don't care, Adam. Not about dinners or movies or whatever the hell else I said. I just care about you. About us."
The grin lifting my lips couldn't be helped. Wasn't that the exact same thing I'd come here to tell her? That our relationship was the only thing that mattered to me, too. Instead of saying any of those words, I closed the distance between us and touched my mouth to hers.
Never before had a kiss tasted as sweet as this. Like a soothing salve to a gaping wound. Food for a dying man's soul.
Like coming home.
Not even considering we were in the middle of a fairly crowded room, I licked at the seam of her lips;begging for entry. She parted them on a sigh, her hands sweeping up the back of my neck and pushing into my hair. A deep groan vibrated through my chest the moment my tongue touched hers. I tasted, savored like I was a starved man.
