Page 73 of A Royal Promise
Clarissa: Are you okay?
Drew: My number is no.
Clarissa: This isn’t funny.
Drew: You need to let it go.
Clarissa: UGH!!!
Clarissa: You’ve made your point. I’ll leave you alone.
Clarissa: I hope you enjoy the rest of your miserable lives together.
After reading the rest of the conversation, Bri bent over laughing so hard tears streamed down her cheeks. She gave the phone back to him and wiped the tears off her face.
“You texted her lyrics from a Meghan Trainor song?”
He shrugged. “Clarissa needed to let it go.”
“I think that point was made.” Bri pressed her lips together, trying not to fall victim to another laughing fit. “I didn’t know you listened to pop songs.”
“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me.” Drew backed away slowly with his eyebrow raised in a flirtatious manner. “Do you mind if I go again and share a truth with you?” he asked.
She nodded, so he continued. “I have a surprise for you when we return home.”
Hearing him call Glencrest their home made her stomach flutter, like she was on a sharp drop on a roller coaster. Shetried to push aside all thoughts of Drew’s home being hers. “A surprise?” Bri rasped out.
“Yep. Just wait until you see the gift I got for you, fiancée.”
“Ha! Is it big and shiny?” she teased.
“Well, if I thought you would accept a giant wedding ring, I would’ve gotten that for you instead.”
On the outside, Bri maintained her cool and calm expression. But on the inside, she was screaming.
He couldn’t be serious. She’d thought he was joking, but now he was taking the joke to another level by talking about a wedding ring.
His flirtatious words had her questioning everything. She’d felt like they had been slowly inching their way out of the friend zone into uncharted territory the past few months. But a comment like that felt like a giant leap, and she wasn’t sure she was ready for it. Because if he was serious about a real ring—a real engagement—it would be a big jump from best friends to betrothed.
She cleared her throat, trying to change the subject. “I know you’re dying for me to pick truth, so go ahead and ask whatever it is you want to ask.”
Drew smiled but then was quiet for a moment as they walked along the dirt path. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet, almost shy. “Why did you kiss me yesterday?”
A twig snapped somewhere in the distance, and Bri’s head turned in that direction. “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah.” He peered around them. “I don’t see anything. Must’ve been an animal.” He nudged her shoulder with his. “Now, stop avoiding the question. Why did you kiss me?”
She inhaled a sharp breath, a blush covering her cheeks. “Clarissa kept trying to prove we weren’t together. I thought if I kissed you in front of her, it would finally get her off our backs.”
He stopped walking and turned to her, taking her hands and looking into her eyes in a way that left her feeling like he could see the mix of emotions going on inside her. “Was that truly the only reason?” His voice was gravelly, and his intensity made goosebumps erupt across her skin.
Bri hesitated.No. Yes. I don’t know.She didn’t have an answer to his question, so she didn’t say anything, her eyes darting back and forth between his.
Drew stepped toward her and took the tumbler from her hands, setting it on the ground before he gently nudged her backward until she was pressed against a large tree. He wrapped one arm around her waist and brushed her jaw with his other hand. The light touch made her shiver and her breath hitch as he leaned in ever so slowly.
When she didn’t do anything to stop him, Drew’s lips finally met hers, and she sighed against them. Bri wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him as close as possible. Every press of his lips to hers was frantic, like he wasn’t sure if this was the last time they would kiss.
She could feel how much he cared for her with every tender caress of his lips. She’d known Drew practically her entire life, but she didn’t feel like she truly knew him until this moment. He was completely vulnerable, laying his feelings on display for her to see through the careful way he held her and the passionate way he kissed her.
