Page 87 of Wrapped Up in Christmas Hope
“Fine,” she murmured, placing her hands on his shoulders and standing on her tiptoes. She’d just press a quick kiss to his lips to appease her cousin and to satisfy her own curiosity.
But when her lips touched Andrew’s, pulling back was the last thought on her mind. Instead, she looked into his beautiful hazel eyes. They locked with hers as he kissed her back with the gentle pressure of his lips against hers. Morgan forgot there was anyone else in the room and that the kiss was only happening because of a Christmas tradition. She forgot Andrew was leaving. She forgot everything except that she was in his arms and he was kissing her, and nothing had ever felt more right.
His kiss was a sweet tasting of her lips that filled her with hope. Andrew kissed her as if her kiss was precious to him.
When he pulled back, his gaze didn’t waver and what she saw there confirmed everything she’d just felt.
“Wow,” she whispered, her hands clinging to his shoulders to keep herself steady on her feet. “Who needs a flashy red truck and sirens when he has that in his arsenal?”
Although he looked torn over how to feel, his eyes lit with recall. Smile playing on his lips, he asked, “Are you saying you were finally impressed?”
Morgan nodded.
He gave a slight shake of his head. “This is complicated.”
Her heart pounded. “So you keep reminding me.”
Clapping sounded around them, pulling Morgan from the fantasy she’d been in where she and Andrew were alone and that he was going to tell her he’d changed his mind, that he wasn’t going to leave her and Greyson. Ugh. How could she keep forgetting they were surrounded by their meddling friends and family?
“Way to go,” Ben congratulated Andrew, slapping him on the back. “You impressed me, too.”
They’d been able to hear their conversation? Morgan’s cheeks flushed so hot that she felt like she’d gone up in flames. How embarrassing!
“Ahem!” Maybelle said into a microphone, calling everyone’s attention to her and rescuing Morgan from further mortification. “If I could have Andrew, Ruby, and Claudia to join me at the front of the room. We’ve prepared a special wedding treat for the newlyweds.”
Morgan’s gaze cut to Andrew in question.
“I’ve got to go, but we’ll talk later,” he said, then surprised her by bending down to press his lips to hers for one last, quick taste before joining Maybelle on the stage.
“What was that?” Sophie asked, immediately coming over to her.
Morgan shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
Because Andrew was leaving, and what could a Christmas kiss change about that?
What had Andrew been thinking? He shouldn’t have kissed Morgan, no matter if a canopy of mistletoe was hung over them.
But what a kiss. Morgan had kissed him with her heart in her eyes.
She didn’t want him to go.
His insides wrenched. Part of him longed to tell her that he’d changed his mind, that he’d stay in Pine Hill for her and Greyson. That if it would make her happy, he’d give up firefighting and find a much safer desk job.
But if he did that, how long would they be happy before he grew restless? How long before his love of firefighting beckoned him back? Firefighting was a part of who he was, ingrained in his very being. He’d never wanted anything else.
Until Greyson and Morgan.
But he couldn’t think about that now.
Not with Maybelle, his grandma, and Morgan’s grandma expecting him to help them pull off their surprise for Rosie. He walked over to where he’d stashed his guitar and their song props earlier.
“Rosie,” Maybelle continued, somehow managing to still look regal in her ridiculous ‘ugly’ sweater bridesmaid dress. “For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve added color to my and the other Butterflies’ lives. Today, we’re adding some color to your wedding.”
Andrew got his guitar and the props. He handed the cardboard posters over to the Butterflies, then put the main microphone in its stand and adjusted the height. Then, he waited for the three Butterflies to get together at their back-up singer microphones. They held the props so that only the plain white backs showed to the crowd.
When they appeared ready, he grinned at the newlyweds. “When my grandma asked me about doing this, I wasn’t so sure, but Rosie and Lou, this one’s for you.” He strummed his pick across his guitar strings, then let loose with Elvis’s “Hound Dog.”
Lots of eyes widened and a few jaws dropped, including those of his back-up singer Butterflies who hadn’t been expecting that particular song. Then chuckles rippled over the crowd.
