go.”
“Preston,” I said, noticing his eyes
focused on my lips. It was almost as if we were being drawn closer to one
another without even trying. “We tried this once, remember?”
“I screwed it up,” he said. “I know that.
I want to try to make it right. I’ve never met anyone like you before, Mirabelle.”
“You just want me because you can’t have
me,” I replied, although it wasn’t entirely true. He could have me. I just
wanted him to show me how bad he wanted me. My mother always told me people
never appreciated things if they never had to work hard for them.
“I want you because you’re beautiful, Miri ,” he said. “Inside and out. And you’re smart. God, are
you smart. And you’re not afraid to put me in my place. You’re genuine,
thoughtful…”
His voice trailed as his words became background noise to the thoughts circling around in my
head. For Preston Woodfield to dole out that many
compliments in one sitting was extremely rare.
“Stop,” I said, cutting him off. “If you
want to be with me, you have to promise to let me in.”
“Let you in?” he asked.
“You’re a closed book,” I said. “I know
nothing about you except that you’re extremely driven and impossibly handsome.”
“True,” he said with a devilish smirk.
“We do need to get to know each other a little better.”
“This can’t just be a physical thing,” I
said as I inched closer into his space. He was so damn irresistible. “It has to
be deeper than that.”
“Anything you want,” he said, our lips
mere centimeters apart.
“No games, no assumptions, no mysteries,”
I said. “Just us.”
With that, Preston’s lips were pressed
against mine, and I melted into his arms in an instant.
TWENTY-FOUR
The day had finally come. As
I sat in my cap and gown, waiting for the university president to call my name
so I could walk across the stage and get my diploma, the hot Georgia sun beat
down and warmed my face. A cool breeze ruffled the long strands of hair that
spilled down my shoulders. It was a perfect day. My sister and niece were
sitting with my parents. My best friends were scattered throughout the student
body, also awaiting their diplomas, and the weather couldn’t have been more
gorgeous for a Saturday in May. But there was one thing missing: Preston.
That night in Seattle back in
April, when Preston and I decided we couldn’t fight our chemistry any longer,
was nothing short of magical. I was worried when we got back to Manhattan and
back to the daily grind that things would change. Things changed all right, but
they changed for the better.
Preston became softer –
at least towards me. He’d sit back in meetings and let me take the reins. He’d
get my coffee in the morning. And once a week, he’d send me fresh flowers,
usually something seasonal like daffodils or tulips.
I told him I wanted to take
thing slow. The last thing I wanted was for us to crash and burn like we’d done
the first time. The chemistry between us was crazy, and sometimes scary, and I
was still trying to navigate the treacherous waters of life as a new adult.
Preston wanted to take care
of me. He wanted to take me under his wing and show me the world. Part of me
wondered if he was making up for never being the protective big brother he
should’ve been when he had the chance. I wanted to see and do everything for
myself though. Maybe I was naïve and stubborn and overly independent, but
that’s who I was. I wasn’t going to change, and I made it perfectly clear to
him.
My row began to stand and
then march towards the podium.
“Mirabelle Elizabeth Baker,”
the president called. My heart raced as I walked across the stage to receive my
diploma. I shook his hand with the biggest smile on my face and threw my arm up
in the air as my family and friends cheered for me.
As the ceremony wrapped up, I
went to find my
“Preston,” I said, noticing his eyes
focused on my lips. It was almost as if we were being drawn closer to one
another without even trying. “We tried this once, remember?”
“I screwed it up,” he said. “I know that.
I want to try to make it right. I’ve never met anyone like you before, Mirabelle.”
“You just want me because you can’t have
me,” I replied, although it wasn’t entirely true. He could have me. I just
wanted him to show me how bad he wanted me. My mother always told me people
never appreciated things if they never had to work hard for them.
“I want you because you’re beautiful, Miri ,” he said. “Inside and out. And you’re smart. God, are
you smart. And you’re not afraid to put me in my place. You’re genuine,
thoughtful…”
His voice trailed as his words became background noise to the thoughts circling around in my
head. For Preston Woodfield to dole out that many
compliments in one sitting was extremely rare.
“Stop,” I said, cutting him off. “If you
want to be with me, you have to promise to let me in.”
“Let you in?” he asked.
“You’re a closed book,” I said. “I know
nothing about you except that you’re extremely driven and impossibly handsome.”
“True,” he said with a devilish smirk.
“We do need to get to know each other a little better.”
“This can’t just be a physical thing,” I
said as I inched closer into his space. He was so damn irresistible. “It has to
be deeper than that.”
“Anything you want,” he said, our lips
mere centimeters apart.
“No games, no assumptions, no mysteries,”
I said. “Just us.”
With that, Preston’s lips were pressed
against mine, and I melted into his arms in an instant.
TWENTY-FOUR
The day had finally come. As
I sat in my cap and gown, waiting for the university president to call my name
so I could walk across the stage and get my diploma, the hot Georgia sun beat
down and warmed my face. A cool breeze ruffled the long strands of hair that
spilled down my shoulders. It was a perfect day. My sister and niece were
sitting with my parents. My best friends were scattered throughout the student
body, also awaiting their diplomas, and the weather couldn’t have been more
gorgeous for a Saturday in May. But there was one thing missing: Preston.
That night in Seattle back in
April, when Preston and I decided we couldn’t fight our chemistry any longer,
was nothing short of magical. I was worried when we got back to Manhattan and
back to the daily grind that things would change. Things changed all right, but
they changed for the better.
Preston became softer –
at least towards me. He’d sit back in meetings and let me take the reins. He’d
get my coffee in the morning. And once a week, he’d send me fresh flowers,
usually something seasonal like daffodils or tulips.
I told him I wanted to take
thing slow. The last thing I wanted was for us to crash and burn like we’d done
the first time. The chemistry between us was crazy, and sometimes scary, and I
was still trying to navigate the treacherous waters of life as a new adult.
Preston wanted to take care
of me. He wanted to take me under his wing and show me the world. Part of me
wondered if he was making up for never being the protective big brother he
should’ve been when he had the chance. I wanted to see and do everything for
myself though. Maybe I was naïve and stubborn and overly independent, but
that’s who I was. I wasn’t going to change, and I made it perfectly clear to
him.
My row began to stand and
then march towards the podium.
“Mirabelle Elizabeth Baker,”
the president called. My heart raced as I walked across the stage to receive my
diploma. I shook his hand with the biggest smile on my face and threw my arm up
in the air as my family and friends cheered for me.
As the ceremony wrapped up, I
went to find my
Similar Books
