Page 25 of Holiday Flame

“I’m sorry to put you through that.” He kisses me behind my ear.

I shiver again, but this time it isn’t the fear. It’s want and desire. I suppose there’s only a thin line separating those emotions. Right now it’s so blurred, it’s nearly impossible to tell which side I’m on.

I want to squeeze him forever. I want to kiss him until neither of us can breathe. I want to tell him everything that’s on my heart.

But there’s one thing that has to happen first.

I lean back in Remington’s arms and gaze up at him through tear-streaked eyes. “I need to tell you something.”

“It’s okay.” His expression softens, and my heart pings. “You don’t have to say anything else about what I heard earlier.”

My brow furrows. “I don’t?”

“I had some time to think about it on the way to the fire and back.” He strokes soothing circles on my back. “And I understand where you were coming from.”

My brows knit even tighter together. “You do?”

“I have a reputation. Some of it’s exaggerated. Some of it”—he gives me a smoldering look filled with promise that has a different part of me pinging now—“is not. But none of it matters.”

“It doesn’t?”

He shakes his head. “All that matters is that you’re giving me a chance. I don’t care how that chance started. I’m just glad I get it.”

“Remington,” I whisper, practically melting into a pool. “I?—”

“Ten—”

We both start as we realize that all around us, the countdown to the new year has begun.

“Nine. Eight?—”

A new year, with a fresh start and endless possibilities.

“Seven. Six?—”

A new year with a new man, who I am just crazy about.

“Five. Four?—”

But there’s still something I have to tell him. Not wanting to waste another second, even to wait for the new year, I stroke his cheek. “Remington, I need to tell you: I’m falling for you.”

TEN

REMINGTON

My breath catches at Jade’s confession and my heart fills with a warm that spreads throughout my whole body.

“… Three. Two. One,” the crowd chants. “Happy New Year!”

Without missing a beat, I pull Jade even closer and lower my head toward hers. Ready to seal her words in the best way we can.

“Happy New Year, baby,” I murmur before capturing her lips.

She makes a low, appreciative noise in the back of her throat and molds her body against mine. It sets my already blazing soul even hotter. I give a deep groan of my own as our lips move together.

This is it. This is how it’s supposed to be. There was no going back for me before. But now, as Jade and I seem to melt together, body and soul, the only way forward is with her.

She’s my present. She’s my future. She’s every damn hope and dream I’ve ever had wrapped into one breathtaking package.