“She returned,” he whispered. “And he told her that he loved her. That romance and love are real, and will be a force for good in their lives. Then he kissed her breathless until they both felt fireworks in their fingertips. They never had to part again unless they wanted to, but neither of them did.”
His fingers threaded into my hair as he tilted my head back. My eyes fluttered closed the second his warm lips pressed against mine. I leaned into him. He wrapped an arm around my back to anchor me against his hard chest.
My bones melted. My body fused to his. I forgot everything but the gentle caress of that all-encompassing kiss. Everything between us was warmth and light and trust, and this was what a first kiss should feel like.
When he finally pulled away, his olive eyes, so murky with emotion, found mine.
“Forgive me for not coming after you?” he whispered. “For not telling you sooner that I loved you the moment I saw you staring at me from the other side of the Zombie Mobile after you almost died?”
“Always.”
He kissed me senseless again until I didn’t know where he started and I began. Until the velvet touch of his lips was as familiar as my own. When I pulled away, he framed my face with his hands. His thumb caressed my bottom lip.
“I didn’t believe in romance, Lizbeth. Maybe not even love until you came along. But I do believe in it now. You’re right. Romance is real. Sometimes it’s heartbreaking. Sometimes it’s sad. A lot of the time it’s hard. But I also believe it’s worth it. You are worth it, Lizbeth. And if you’ll have me, I’ll always be yours.”
This moment always happened in the romance books: the turning point. The time when the love interest realized what an idiot he had been and confessed his feelings to the girl. It had made my heart thrill a thousand times. More than once, I’d thrown the book across the room in annoyance—because, hello? Why did it take you so long to figure this out, stupid love interest?
During the long, lonely nights when Mama and Dad screamed at each other, I’d dreamt of this moment myself. The man who would come in, sweep me off my feet, and whisk me away from the hell I’d lived in so long.
And this time it felt exactly the way I wanted it to feel.
Like magic in my toes. Wings on my heart. Hope on my horizon. A safe place to land when all the world was dark and scary. Arms to hold me tight and promise me I’d always be loved, never alone.
“You’re scared.” I looked into his eyes. “Aren’t you?”
He smiled softly. “Terrified.”
“Me too.”
JJ blinked. His expression softened. “Is it worth it to you, Lizbeth? The risk of love?”
“Yes.”
JJ tightened his fingers around mine. “Then take a risk with me?”
I leaned into him and pressed my lips to his. His arms wrapped around me, his hands tangled in my hair, and I forgot to be afraid.
34 JJ
Mark stood in the corner of the Adventure kitchen, his cell phone pressed against his ear. He leaned back against the stainless steel refrigerator, nostrils flared, face puckered. Whatever the other person on the line side, it didn’t look good from this end.
“Yeah,” he muttered. “Okay. Okay. Okaaaaay.”
“Fine.” He saw me looking at him, pointed to his phone, and rolled his eyes. “I promise I won’t do anything stupid. Swear it. Okay, gotta go.”
He hung up.
“My accountant,” he muttered, “is the single most frustrating woman on the planet. I’ve never seen her face, can’t remember why or how I hired her, she infuriates me almost every time we speak, and I will never, ever fire her because she is probably the only thing standing between me and utter bankruptcy.”
I grinned. “Sounds like a match made in heaven.”
He let out an exasperated breath. “I hope I never meet her, and I also hope she keeps telling me to stop making stupid decisions.”
“She doesn’t like the spa?”
“No. She thinks it’s a terrible idea.”
I couldn’t help a smile. “But you’re doing it anyway, right?”
“That depends,” he drawled, then turned to Lizbeth. Just as his mouth opened to speak, she stopped him with a hand in the air.
“I already told you I’m not opening an agency,” Lizbeth said from across the kitchen where she sat, her computer on her lap.
“Fine.” Mark leaned against the wall and folded his arms, chewing his bottom lip in thought. “Then what if JJ opens his own catering service from Adventura, and you do the website design? We’ll hire out all the back end. I do have an awesome accountant. She’s irritating as all get-out but does her job well.”
“That’s up to JJ.”
Mark groaned. “He’s never going to do it. But if you have the agency and—”
“You don’t know that.” She fluttered a hand in a dismissive gesture. “Now, go away, Mark. JJ is making frosting next, and then we’ll be back inside to start the Christmas Eve festivities. Tell Meg I’ll bring some more drinks.”
He scoffed. “You just want me to leave so you can make out.”
“Totally,” I said with a grin, the dry scent of flour in the air.
Lizbeth grinned at me and winked. Several massive cinnamon rolls cooled behind me as I slid another tray of carefully rolled balls of dough into the oven.
Mark thoughtfully drummed his fingers on the counter. “Fine, Lizbeth. Maybe you don’t have an agency, just a solo venture. But my offer to back it still stands.” Mark held up two hands. “I’m just saying! The board members were so impressed with the dashboard and what you did for Adventura that I don’t think you’ll be able to do all the work they’re going to have for you all by yourself. Hence, agency.
