Page 38 of Holiday Love
I glance at him out of the corner of my eye. “You mean...fake first kiss?”
Teddy’s still looking at the page, but there’s a flicker of pink in his cheeks.
So he does remember…
He stutters out, “Unless you want to go with the, uh…actual version.”
Oh no. Nope.
Except…my brain flashes back. The feel of his hands on my waist. His mouth, hot and hungry. The way he whispered words of praise against my throat.
I swallow hard and hug my chest. My voice comes out low and scratchy. “I guess we can use the real one.”
Teddy shrugs, then lifts his head and flashes me a lazy grin, just this side of smug. “For the record, it was a great kiss. Very memorable. There was enthusiasm.”
“Shut up.”
“What?” Teddy says, chuckling. “I’m just saying. Strong technique. Unexpected aggression. A little startling.”
“I’m pretty sure you liked it,” I mutter before I can stop myself.
His grin deepens. “Oh, Idid.”
There’s a beat of silence. A long, dangerous beat where my heart tries to catapult out of my chest. The room becomes smaller, warmer. He’s staring at me, his eyes tracing the shape of my lips, and I wonder if I lean forward would he kiss me?
That’s a terrible idea. Right? I need him now. To make my mom happy. To pull off this fake boyfriend thing. A kiss would ruin that. Take us someplace we’ve been before and look how that ended last time.
Teddy gone.
Me alone.
No thanks.
I angle my body away. “Okay, so maybe our story is that we kissed at the wedding. A random spur of the moment event. Blame the open bar and poor judgment.” My heart gives a twinge of protest at the inaccuracy of that description, but I ignore it.
Teddy flinches at that, just a twitch, gone so quick I might have imagined it. “Got it. Victims of circumstance. A classic meet-mess.” His voice is too light. Brittle.
I glance back. “I didn’t mean it like—”
“It’s fine.” He waves me off, mouth in a straight line and eyes glued to the pad. “Let’s move on.”
The moment is gone. Sealed off. I gust out a breath and shake the tension from my shoulders, simultaneously relieved and aggravated that we aren’t going to discuss it any further.
Teddy chews his lip thoughtfully. “Okay, what’s my favorite thing about you?”
I arch a brow. “My dazzling personality?”
“No,” he says without hesitation. “Your loyalty. How you never give up on people. Even when they don’t deserve it.”
I blink. That hits harder than I expected. “Oh,” is all I can manage.
Teddy quickly adds, “and your taste in robes.”
“There it is.”
Teddy jots it down:Why he loves her: Loyalty. Heart. Robe curation skills.He hands me the note, and I line it up neatly next to the others.
I sink back into the couch but notice he’s gone unusually quiet. He fidgets, clears his throat, then says, “Uh…what about me?”
