Dane said something, but Lacy was too lost in her own thoughts to comprehend it.
“I’m sorry, what?” Get a grip.
“The song is over,” he said.
Lacy looked around and cringed. She and Dane were the only couple left on the dance floor, moving against each other in a sensual rhythm…with no music.
“Oh my gosh. I’m sorry.” She pulled away.
Dane kept hold of her hand. “Come with me,” he said. He pulled her through French doors that led out to the terrace. The cool night air sent goose bumps racing up her arms as she hurried beside him to the waist-high wrought-iron railing overlooking a carpet of grass below. She could hear the crashing of waves in the distance.
The stars speckled the blue-black sky like hundreds of eyes gazing down on them. The moon cast a romantic haze into the night. Music filtered out from the reception and disappeared into the breeze. Lacy gripped the edge of the railing, hoping Dane wouldn’t notice how nervous she was.
“I know we spoke earlier when you were on your way into town, but how are you?” he asked.
Nervous. Horny. Embarrassed. “I’m well.” I’m well? I might as well have said that I’m a loser. “The wedding was beautiful, wasn’t it?” she asked, trying to find something to talk about that would take her mind off of how much she wanted him.
“Treat knows how to put on a wedding.” He moved closer to her, his shoulder rubbing against hers. “Lacy, talk to me.”
She turned to face him, and all those nights flashed in her mind like a silent movie: the way Dane had been overcome with sadness when he spoke of his mother’s death and how he’d stayed up all night with her on Skype when she’d had the stomach flu, just to make sure she wasn’t alone. She’d be lying to herself if she didn’t admit that in all those nights of sexual innuendos and—oh God, virtual sex—as the months pressed on, she wondered why they hadn’t found a way to be together.
He reached over and ran his finger down her cheek, then lifted her chin so her eyes met his.
“Why didn’t we see each other?” she asked, then immediately regretted it. Dane probably had a zillion women at the ready. Why would he take time away from his schedule just to see her?
He put one strong hand on each of her arms and looked into her eyes. He shook his head. “Stupidity?”
Lacy laughed, but her heart secretly cracked. She’d been engrossed in chasing her promotion and was working every second, too, but if he had mentioned the chance of a visit, she would have tossed that aside and found a way to be with him.
“Really, Lace. I should have made it happen, and when I couldn’t, I made sure we spoke almost every night. I feel like I’ve known you all my life, and I was sure we’d see each other again after Nassau. But then I had to go to Maui, then Belize, then California.”
“You were in Florida, too,” she reminded him. Brave’s headquarters were in Florida, and when Dane wasn’t traveling, he lived on his boat off the coast.
“Right. But I was never in Massachusetts, and that was very bad planning.” He stepped closer, his eyes darkening until they were almost black; the hunger in them made her shiver. “I’m so sorry. I thought of you every second.”
She swallowed hard. Being this close to Dane, feeling the heat between them, Lacy wondered if making the promotion a priority over Dane had been the stupidest decision she’d ever made. I could have been with you. She knew that was a pipe dream. Dane’s schedule was even crazier than hers had been.
“Lacy,” he whispered. “I’m sorry.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. She was flustered by the hunger in his dark eyes and the way it quelled her heart and revved her desire. He pulled her closer, and she flattened her hands against his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath her palms.
“Lacy, I have to kiss you,” he said, piercing her with an intense stare.
She gripped his lapel to stabilize her rubbery legs as he lowered his mouth to hers, gentle at first, then taking her in a greedy, passionate kiss. Every stroke of his tongue sent her stomach aflutter. He slid his large hands down her slim waist and clenched her hips, pulling her against every inch of his hard length.
When they finally drew apart, Lacy felt intoxicated. The sweet taste of alcohol and lust lingered on her tongue as Dane gripped the railing on either side of her, trapping her in between. He leaned forward. His breath was warm on her neck, his body a living, breathing furnace against her.
“What are we going to do with my fifteen months of fantasies about you? They’ve stolen any chance I have at rational thought,” he whispered.
Lacy hoped that when she opened her mouth to speak, her voice would find its way past her pounding heart. “Who needs rational thought?” Kiss me again. Please kiss me again.
Dane’s eyes flashed hot. Lacy held his stare. He didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to. She’d go anywhere he wanted, whenever he was ready.
The door to the reception room swung open, and Max and Treat stood behind them. “We were looking for you,” Treat said.
Dane took Lacy’s hand and turned around. Her pulse raced and her mind ran in circles. How could she possibly wait until the end of the reception to kiss him again? He squeezed her hand. Lacy bit the inside of her mouth to keep from saying something stupid out of sheer nervousness.
Treat ran his eyes between them. “Lacy, what a pleasure to see you again.” He leaned forward and kissed her cheek, never letting go of Max’s hand.
“It was a beautiful wedding,” she said, relieved that her voice didn’t shake. She’d thought it might. “Max, you look stunning. I am so happy for both of you.” Max worked for Chaz, and she and Lacy had become fast friends after meeting at her sisters’ wedding.
“Do you mind if I catch up with Lacy for a few minutes?” Max asked Treat.
“Of course not, Mrs. Braden. I’ve got you for the rest of our lives.” With one strong arm, he swept her against him and kissed her. When they parted, Max’s cheeks were flaming red.
Max took Lacy’s hand and pulled her away from Dane, but he held on tight, their arms stretched between them.
“Dane, really?” Max said with a sigh.
“Okay, but bring her back,” he teased.
Lacy glanced at him over her shoulder as Max led her back into the reception hall and toward Kaylie and Danica’s table. Part of her wished she hadn’t been swept away.
“You have that recently fucked look,” Max said.
“Max!” Lacy could tell from her serious eyes and wide smile that she was only half joking. She saw Dane and Treat enter the room.
“Your cheeks are flushed, and your eyelids are dreamily heavy. Seriously, if you don’t want your sisters to know, you’d better pull it together.”
Lacy shot a look at Danica and Kaylie. Kaylie had one hand cupped around her mouth as she spoke into Danica’s ear. Their eyes were locked on Lacy. She took a deep breath and flopped into a chair, throwing pulling it together out the window.
“Well?” Kaylie and Danica asked in unison.
“We kissed. Oh my God, did we kiss,” she said breathlessly.
Kaylie put her hand out toward Danica. “I believe you owe me five bucks.”
Danica reached for her purse. “Really, Lacy? You couldn’t have waited just two hours after the wedding? That’s not asking for a lot. A few fricken hours.” She smiled as she handed a five to Kaylie.
“You bet on when I’d kiss him?” Lacy said sharply, trying to appear upset while holding back a smile. She secretly loved the sisterly banter she’d missed out on for so many years. “And really, Danica? Could you wait two hours when that was waiting for you?” She lifted her chin toward Dane, who was watching her from across the room. I want you was written in his eyes.
Max leaned over the table. “I’ll pay you later,” she whispered.
“Max! You too?” Lacy said with a tsk.
Max pretended to inspect her newly manicured fingernails.
Lacy slapped her hand. “I can’t believe you guys. Is this why you dragged me away from Dane?” When I could be kissing those luscious lips of his again? She shivered just thinking about it.
“Oh, please. Of course it is.” Kaylie rolled her eyes. She pushed her hair over her shoulder. “You didn’t expect us not to talk about you and Dane, did you? He’s all you’ve thought about since Nassau.”
“He is not.” Lacy had been thinking and talking about Dane nonstop for months. She had no idea why she was denying it. “Okay, fine. God, what am I gonna do? I can’t look at him without feeling all those months of wanting him coming forward, but then it kind of hurts that he never actually came to see me.”
“We’ve talked about this for more than a year. You said it was a scheduling thing. Do you think it was something else? Do you think he’s a player?” Danica asked.
Do I? “No, but you have to admit that it’s a really long time.”
“It is, and you’ve known that. You said you talked about it with him. And now you want to know why you are having such a hard time, right?” Danica asked. She didn’t give Lacy a chance to answer. “It’s because you’re here and ready to take the past year and a half to the next level. Intimacy can be a huge step.”