Page 55 of Falling Into Forever
But Saylor is feeling everything I am. She just has to give herself permission to explore it.
Luckily for us both, I’m nothing if not persuasive when I want something, and I can’t remember wanting anything more than I want this woman.
“Get dressed, sweetheart. We make our debut at eleven.” I’m so freaking giddy at the prospect that my cheeks hurt from the perma-grin I’ve been wearing for the last hour.
As expected, Saylor scowls, but it’s too late. I already saw it in her eyes. Hope.
CHAPTER15
SAYLOR
“Are you all set for a couple of hours?” I ask Lilly.
“Oh, yeah. Totally,” she says with stars in her eyes. She already has a stack of books in front of her. She’s worked odd hours for me for about six months, but I knew the day Grady walked his little sister in my door it had nothing to do with the paycheck.
Lilly Reid is as obsessed with books as I am. She’s a romantic, though, and still thinks love is all you need. I guess that’s easy to believe when you’re sixteen.
“You didn’t want to go to the Lemon Festival?” Dante asks from the doorway. He wasn’t exactly thrilled to see Grady drop her off this morning, but he played nice.
“Oh, no. Kai has to work…” Her face turns a brilliant shade of pink at the mention of her boyfriend. I don’t know much about him, but I’ve met his mom and stepdad a couple of times. It makes me laugh because it must infuriate Grady. As her legal guardian, he takes protective to a whole other level. “But he might stop by later,” she says quietly.
Alarm shows on Dante’s face, but I shrug. Lilly is a smart, responsible kid, and I trust her.
“Okay, well, there are more lemon pops in the storage room if you run out.” As a business owner, I’m obligated to have something lemon-themed for anyone who comes in today. I bought the sourest, tartest ones I could find. The passive-aggressive act makes me feel better about my required participation.
My gaze jumps to Dante briefly. Remembering his declaration to make me have fun has my cheeks heating uncomfortably.
Lilly nods when I return my attention to her. She’s waiting for us to leave so she can read, so I walk toward Dante and usher him out the door.
“Is Grady okay with her boyfriend dropping by? It’s not like there are a ton of customers to keep her busy,” Dante asks as soon as the door closes behind us.
“Probably not, but don’t worry about her. She’ll be busy. The kids always come to the bookstore. It’s become like a rite of passage for them. Every year I get the sourest lemon treat I can find. They all flock to the store to see who can handle the sour.”
Yeah, I’m a little proud of that.
He lifts his brow and graces me with that dimple I love.
“Two people threw up last year.”
“You sound very proud of that achievement too. I’m sure the parents loved you for it,” he says mockingly.
Indignation rises in my gut as I tug the pendant around my neck. “I’ll have you know, one of them was a dad. It’s not only kids who take my challenge.”
“Interesting. And is there a reason you took that particular angle on Lemon Fest?” He removes my hand from my necklace and lifts the chain himself.
He studies it, and an uncomfortable heat coats my skin.
“Your—face is laughing at me.” I try to sound annoyed, so he won’t stare too closely at my pendant, but it’s not working. “Yes, actually, there is a reason. No one likes too much sweet. There has to be something to balance it all out.”
“Like you and me,” he says, dropping my necklace while his swirling pools of emotion stare at me like he can decode all my secrets.
“Huh?”
He leans over and takes my hand. “Your circle, it has dates in Roman numerals.”
Shit. Shit. Shit.
If he notices my sweaty palm, at least he’s gentlemanly enough not to say anything. And I definitely don’t want to admit that my heart syncs to his the second we touch.
