Be My Love (A Walker Island Romance Book 1) by Lucy Kevin

promised, and Mandy pulled the door shut.
    Just that simple act ratcheted up the tension in the room instantly. And now that they were alone, it was impossible to ignore how good Joel looked. How sweet he’d been all day.
    And how badly she wanted to kiss him.
    How would they manage to get through an entire night sharing a room?
    “I can sleep on the floor,” Joel suggested, in answer to her unspoken question.
    “Don’t be silly. There’s lots of room for you on the bed. You could fit an army on that bed.”
    But in that moment as Joel’s gaze locked with hers, it was obvious how much he wanted her. As much as she wanted him.
    “It’s not an army I’m worried about, Hanna.” He looked slightly pained as he said, “I’m going to go splash some cold water on my face.”
    As he headed through to the bathroom, Hanna tried to distract herself, setting up her camera for a video diary of the day so far. Something for the documentary. Only, when it came to it, she didn’t have the words. Not when all she could think about was Joel.
    Turning off her camera, she took out her phone and left a text message for her sisters. Missed the ferry. Staying over in Seattle. I’m with Joel, so everything’s fine.
    ‘Fine’ didn’t come close to covering it, but she knew better than to mention anything about sharing a room with Joel to her sisters. At this point, even mentioning him was a risk.
    Hanna worked to clear her mind as she lay back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. It wasn’t like she’d brought an overnight bag, and she wasn’t about to start taking anything off around Joel. Well…not unless he wanted her to.
    No. It wasn’t going to happen. They weren’t going to happen.
    When Joel came out of the bathroom, he stopped several feet from the bed, clearly afraid to get too close even though they were both fully clothed.
    Hanna knew she needed to leave the room, and she needed to leave it quickly. Before she did or said something that he might not be able to forgive her for.
    And maybe she would have actually managed it, had Joel not reached for her hand as she got up from the bed to pull her closer.
    “Hanna?” His deep voice resonated all the way down to her toes. “I’ve been trying to fight this all week, but—”
    With his hand over hers and his heated gaze warming her from the inside out, she couldn’t stop herself from moving even closer, and whispering, “—now it’s time for one more thing that a Peterson and a Walker haven’t done together in sixty years, isn’t it?”
    And then she kissed him.
    And, oh, the way he kissed her back made her breathless. His mouth on hers was hard and desperate one moment, then gentle and sweet the next. She tried to memorize every contour of his lips, the delicious roughness of his stubble against her cheek.
    “I don’t want you to sleep on the floor, and I don’t want to just sleep,” she said softly. “I know you think you’re doing the right thing pulling back all the time, but you’re not. I don’t want to hold back with you anymore. Especially after getting to know you better and spending such a wonderful day with you. For one night, can’t we just be who we are and feel how we feel without worrying about what happened between our families so many years ago?”
    He didn’t say yes, but he didn’t need to, because the way he pulled her fiercely against him and claimed her mouth again was the only answer she needed.
    And with Joel, she felt so safe, so perfect, that the moment was everything she could have ever wanted it to be.

CHAPTER TWELVE
     
    The next morning, Hanna woke up with a smile on her lips. Last night had been perfect.
    Absolutely perfect .
    She felt full of energy and couldn’t wait to see what the day would bring. After giving Joel a quick “good morning” kiss, she grabbed her clothes and practically bounced across the room into the bathroom.
    After the day—and the night—they’d spent together, she should have been