Page 28 of November's Bad Boy: Kacen
Kacen. Standing in the doorway, uncertain whether he’s allowed to come in.
His hair’s messy, proof he’s been dragging his hands through it all night. He’s wearing jeans and a button-down. But his eyes find mine instantly. And when they do, he doesn’t look away.
My heart trips.
He walks in slowly. Not a dramatic entrance. Just steady. Like a man who’s made a decision.
Kacen makes his way through the crowd, never breaking eye contact with me. And I stay still, watching him come closer, feeling something in my chest loosen with every step he takes.
He reaches me. Doesn’t say anything at first. Just takes the glass from my hand and sets it on the table. Then his hands cradle my face, thumbs brushing lightly against my cheeks.
“I heard your toast,” he says quietly. “I wasn’t late. I was just scared.”
My breath catches. “Are you still scared?”
He leans in, forehead resting against mine. “Yeah. But I’m here anyway.”
CHAPTER 11
KACEN
The cold nips at my cheeks the moment I step out of my truck outside the community center, but I barely feel it. String lights stretch from the rafters to the trees, casting a soft golden glow over the courtyard. Inside, dishes clinking and kids running with mittens half on and frosting on their cheeks.
And she’s standing right in the middle of it.
Natalie.
The orange dress she wore is a little rumpled now, like she’s been hugging too many people, and her hair has started to fall out of its bun. She looks like autumn itself. A little wild. A little warm. And entirely like home.
Her eyes lock with mine with each step I take toward her.
“Your toast,” I say. “It wrecked me.”
She lets out a breath that sounds like a laugh and a sigh all at once. “Wasn’t trying to wreck anyone.”
“You didn’t. Not really. You just… cut straight through all the noise.”
We fall into silence again. This time, it’s not awkward. It’s fuller, brimming with possibility. Waiting for whatever comes next.
"Go for a walk with me?" I ask, looking around as all eyes are on us.
She catches it too, but nods, and together we step back out the door I just came in.
I shove my hands into my jacket pockets, trying to keep them from shaking. Once outside, my breath fogs out in front of me.
“I wanted to run tonight. I almost did. Even got all the way to the edge of town before I turned back.”
Natalie blinks, her expression unreadable. “Why did you?”
“Because I couldn’t live with the idea of you thinking I didn’t care. Of you thinking I was the type of man who bails when things get real.”
She doesn’t say anything for a long moment, and I almost fill the space with more words, more apologies. But then she steps forward just a little.
Her voice is soft but sure. “And what kind of man are you?”
I swallow, heart pounding. “The kind that is tired of hiding. Exhausted from running. I want to stay. For you. For me. For whatever this is. I want to choose it completely, even if it scares the hell out of me.”
She steps forward again, and now she’s close enough that I can see the freckles along her collarbone and the faint shimmer of tears she hasn’t let fall.
