This berry tart may have been that very thing.
“So naughty,” Gretchen said, putting her fork down on the empty plate. “I bet you gain three whole pounds eating that.”
Julian sat up sharply. “That’s not possible. Is it?”
She laughed at him and shook her head. “No. You’re fine. Half a berry tart isn’t the end of the world. You did get a serving of fiber-rich fruit out of it, after all.”
That’s when Julian noticed a small dab of strawberry glaze at the corner of her lips. He reached for his napkin to dab it away, but hesitated. He had a better idea.
“Hold still,” he said, leaning across the table toward her. With one hand gently caressing her neck, he pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth, removing the last of their dessert before moving over and kissing her.
Just like every time he touched her, Julian immediately responded to Gretchen. With her soft lips pressed against his and the scent of her skin filling his lungs, he couldn’t pull away. Every muscle in his body tightened with a building need for her. Each time they kissed, his desire for her grew. He knew that this was a business arrangement, but he couldn’t help his reaction to her. He wanted her more than he’d wanted any other woman before.
But unlike the other times when they were practicing making it look good for the cameras, this time Gretchen pulled away from him.
He wasn’t expecting it, and her sudden withdrawal left him hovering, vulnerable, over the table. “What’s the matter?”
She watched him with wary dark eyes. “What was that about?”
His brows went up. “What was the kiss about?”
“Yes.” She glanced around the café, her gaze dropping into her lap. “I thought you said we were done practicing that. There’s no one watching us right now.”
Gretchen couldn’t fathom that he would kiss her just because he could. Because he wanted to. “That kiss,” he said, “wasn’t for the cameras. That one was for me.”
Her eyes met his with a narrowed gaze and a frown wrinkling her nose. “I don’t understand.”
Julian reached across the table and took her hand. “What is there to understand, Gretchen? I like you. I wanted to kiss you, so I did. That’s pretty simple boy-meets-girl kind of stuff.”
She nodded, although he wasn’t entirely sure she felt better about the whole thing. “I told you before I’m not that good with the boy-meets-girl thing.”
She had told him, but he didn’t realize until that moment how serious she was about it. How was it possible that she couldn’t understand why he’d want to kiss her? Was her self-esteem so low that she didn’t think she was worthy of his attention? If so, he’d see to correcting that assumption right away.
“You said you like me. What did you mean by that?”
“I mean that I like you. And yes, that I’m attracted to you. I know this arrangement is mostly about business, and I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable, but I’m into you, Gretchen. Truly.”
She responded with silence, reaching out to take a sip of her iced tea. It was almost as though she didn’t know how to respond, as if he’d said “I love you” too soon in a relationship. Had he read the signals wrong? He didn’t want her to think that he presumed their contract extended to extracurricular activities in the bedroom. He was about to say something to soften the statement when she looked up at him with an intensity in her chocolate-brown eyes.
“I’m attracted to you, as well,” she said boldly.
Julian shelved the instinctual smile. He didn’t want her to think he was laughing at her. It was anything but. He had suspected that she was turned on by him, but he couldn’t know for sure. Knowing made him feel lighter somehow. “I’m glad we got that out there.”
She nodded, and her gaze returned to her lap. Any fantasies he had about taking her back to his hotel room and making love to her that instant fizzled away. One step at a time, he reminded himself. Besides, they had work they were avoiding. Even if she wanted him as desperately as he wanted her, there was a wedding coming up, and the ballroom needed to be decorated sooner rather than later.
“I guess we’d better get back to the chapel,” he said. “I promised I’d help you set up all those decorations, remember?”
“You don’t really have to,” she said dismissively. “You bought my food, and more importantly, this necklace. I’ll happily stay up all night decorating on my own to make up for the lost time.”