How to Turn a Frog into a Prince - Bree Wolf Page 0,112
muscle that was like a beacon in the dark, betraying all that he felt. And she knew him well enough to understand. She knew how to read him. She knew what lived in his heart.
Perhaps better than he did himself.
A soft sigh drifted from her lips as she stood in front of him, her body all but leaning against his, warm and soft and so very alive. “I think after the way Abigail turned from you,” Charlaine whispered gently, her voice no longer accusing, “a part of you wanted to know if I would fight for you.”
Nathanial swallowed, remembering how worthless he had felt when Abigail had given away his father’s ring. Of course, she had known what that ring meant to him and, yes, it had cut him deep. That she would do this, knowingly, not bothered by the effect it would have on him had devastated Nathanial for, to him, it had proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that she had never cared for him.
That all had been a lie.
And he had felt like the most worthless fool to ever walk the earth.
Of course, now, he knew the truth. Now, he knew why Abigail had done all she had done then, and a part of him understood. A part of him knew that it had had nothing to do with him. Still, the fear to not be enough for another, to always be second best, a consolation prize because one could not have what one truly desired, continued to linger. It had snuck into his heart and taken root, and Nathanial knew not how to rid himself of it.
But he wanted to.
After all, Charlaine was not Abigail.
And quite plainly, Nathanial himself was no longer the man he had been mere months ago.
“I am here,” Charlaine told him gently, but firmly, her brown eyes holding his captive. “I’m here right in front of you and I’m fighting to keep you. Can you not see that?” For a second, her bottom lip seemed to quiver, an almost imperceptible sign that she, too, was battling emotions that threatened to overwhelm her. “Can you not see that I love you? Can you not see that the thought of losing you to another terrifies me just as much? Do you not know what I’m saying, what I’m asking, what I want?” She inhaled a slow breath. “If I’m wrong and you do not truly love me, I will release you. I promise.” A smile teased the corners of her lips. “But I don’t think I’m wrong.”
Something sparked in her eyes in that moment that stole Nathanial’s breath. It was something teasing, something daring. It reminded him of the many wonderful hours they had spent together over the course of the summer, a time he would cherish until the day he died. It also reminded him of the many madcap ideas that had sprouted from her head; ideas she had pursued with a single-minded intent that knew no equal. It reminded him of the many moments she had been in his arms, dancing through the meadow barefoot, holding her to him as they had ridden home in the storm, kissing her that day by the lake.
His gaze inevitably dropped to her lips as the desire he had felt that day came back full force. It burned through his veins and made his hands drop to her middle, pulling her closer with a swift tug. Dear heavens, he wanted to kiss her again!
A soft gasp escaped her lips at his sudden reaction before they curled up into a smile, her hands snaking up his shoulders. “Kiss me,” she whispered as though she had read his thoughts, “and if you feel nothing but friendship, if it feels awkward and unpleasant, then you’ll have your answer,” she swallowed hard, “and I’ll have mine.”
Nathanial gritted his teeth, tempted beyond comprehension. “What if—?”
Looking down at her, Nathanial knew that he had lost, that he was lost. No matter how much he feared that it would not work between them, that they would lose each other by daring to reach for more, he knew that she would not allow him to retreat.
Indeed, she was fighting for him, and the knowledge of how deeply she cared for him warmed Nathanial’s chilled heart. He knew that losing her would destroy him. He knew that having her friendship was better than having nothing. But he also knew that it would not be