“I didn’t accost you.” His smile widened. “Yet.”
A shiver ran through her at the thought of her number one fantasy coming true.
His eyes darkened and…yeah. He noticed.
One step closer and his large, warm hand slipped around her waist. “Think we’ll be the first ones to make out in here?”
Heat skated across her skin as she lined her body up with his and buried her fingers in his soft, thick hair. “Hardly.”
“Mmm,” he murmured, dipping his head.
“We can’t, like, do it,” she said against his mouth. “I’m on the clock.”
He muttered a “fine” before sealing his lips over hers. A soft groan left the back of his throat and settled deep inside her chest, reminding her it had become one of her favorite sounds over the past year.
Graham never hid how much he wanted her. And as the only man she’d ever been her true self around, that felt pretty damn wonderful.
After what he’d been through as a kid, she made sure he knew just how lucky she was to be his, too. Even if he laughed them off, he secretly loved her public displays of affection and possessiveness. She saw it in the light in his eyes and the way he pulled her close, and she could only hope there’d never again be a day where he wondered if he was enough.
His hips forced her back against the shelf and her arms wound around his back, urging him closer. She angled her head to the side for a deeper kiss, and just as she was about to announce she was calling out for the rest of the day, he was gone.
It took her brain a few seconds to catch up, her arms falling to her sides as she searched for him, finding him down.
Kneeling before her.
On one knee.
She froze.
“Claire.”
She…squeaked?
His eyes searched hers, uncharacteristically serious.
“I’ll never forget the day you came home all worked up after seeing a proposal in the emergency room. That might have been the best day of my life, because it’s what started us on the path we’re on now. I’d have convinced you to hold up our original marriage pact, sure—and don’t even try to say it wasn’t real because we both know it was. But doing it this way is so much better. Instead of defaulting into marriage because we didn’t want to end up alone, I get to ask you to marry me because I can’t imagine my life without you. I’ll never want anyone else the way I want you, and according to you no other man could handle you. Which is fine by me, because I never want to take my hands off you.”
He paused and swallowed. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but being with you makes me happier than when I’ve hit the top of a half-day climb, and nothing else has ever topped that. I can only hope I make you that happy, too—but if I don’t, I’m sure you’ll let me know.” He smiled wide then, that broad, unrestricted, magnificent smile that took her breath away, and held out a ring. “Claire Harper, will you marry me?”
“Oh, my gosh,” she blurted. “Ruthie doesn’t really have a date tonight, does she?” She was in on it and set this whole thing up!
Graham cocked his head, a frown descending on his brow. “Uh. I—”
A laugh bubbled up, joy expanding in her chest as tears burned beneath her lids. “Never mind.” She grabbed his hand and tugged him to his feet. “I just—I can’t believe—I had no idea,” she babbled, incoherent thoughts of shock and amazement bouncing around in her brain. “How long have you been planning this?”
He sighed, indulgent amusement etched across his features. “Claire. Could you answer my question, please?”
She framed his face and kissed him hard. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
His arms came around her waist and he lifted her, smiling up at her grinning face. “Yeah?”
She kissed him again. And again. “Yeah.”
“You’ll be Claire, Graham’s fiancée?”
She wrapped her legs around him and buried her face in his neck.
“Finally, a nickname I can get on board with.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My goodness, Claire and Graham were fun to write. They began as side characters in Would You Rather and quickly took on a life of their own. I’m so happy I was given the opportunity to tell their story because I had a blast doing it.
Thank you to Margot Mallinson for believing the premise of this book was worth it and Dina Davis for ultimately working on it with me and making it shine. Thanks to the MIRA and Harlequin teams for everything you do behind the scenes to get these books on the shelves. I still can’t believe I can walk into a bookstore and see a book with my name on it sitting there. Which brings me to Kim Lionetti, my powerhouse agent—without you I’d have never known that reality. I appreciate your expertise, knowledge, and calm guidance as we navigate the publishing process.