was what kept me going. What protected me. People let me be. They started calling me Moody Middlebright.”
The pain was back in his gaze, but this time it was for her. “I understand very well how the darkness can pull at you. And how anger can be the easiest thing to feel. But I am so sorry for all the bad things that have happened in your life.”
She shook her head. “You’re the last person who should be apologizing to me. You’ve had your own troubles. More than your share, really.” She sighed. “How are you not a raging storm of hate and resentment?”
“I was in the early days. Still struggle with it a lot.” He smiled a little. “But I can’t let myself go down that path very far, or I’m not sure I’d come back. It’s dark and inviting.”
She nodded. “I know.”
He gave her a curious look. “Maybe your coming here was what we both needed.”
“Amelia said I should try to get you to have fun.”
“She did, did she?”
“Yep.” Sharing her truth with him had made her feel lighter, a very unexpected side effect.
He came closer, leaving very little space between them. “You know what’s fun?”
She looked up at him. Into his sapphire eyes with those long, beautiful lashes. “What?”
He cupped her jaw in his hands. “This.” Then he pressed his mouth to hers in a long, slow kiss. He took his time, like she was a sweet to be savored. An indulgence that he wanted to explore.
She reached out for something to hold on to, a way to steady herself from the dizziness of sudden pleasure. Her hands found his trim waist, hard with muscle beneath the thin layer of his T-shirt. She tried to think about how this shouldn’t be happening, but forming thoughts was impossible, unless it was to focus on him and the firm press of his lips and the warmth of his body under her hands.
She’d never been kissed like this. Not once. And if this was what kissing was really like, she wanted more of it. From him.
Thankfully, he seemed in no hurry to be done.
Minutes later, when he ended it, she was breathless.
His smile was languid and confident. “See? Wasn’t that fun?”
She nodded silently. She understood the question, but words escaped her. All she could do was…smile.
Chapter Fifteen
Robin wanted to kiss her again. He wanted to spend the rest of the day kissing her. But he didn’t want to scare her off either. At least she looked happy. Quite the opposite of the picture she’d painted of herself. Was he the reason for that change? Perhaps. But probably best to leave things there.
He took her hand and started to walk toward the woods.
After a few moments, she said, “I don’t know what to say or think about all that.”
“The kissing?”
“Yes.”
“Is that because you don’t want me to do it again?” He braced himself for her answer.
She laughed softly, and even in the lower light of the pavilion, he could see pinkness in her cheeks. “No. If anything, I want you to do it again, more than I should.”
He grinned. Good to know they were on the same page where that was concerned.
“It just feels so strange,” she continued.
“You’ll get used to it.”
She snorted, seemingly back to her usual self. “No, I meant kissing you.”
“Why?”
She gave him an amused look. “You were king. My king, for however brief a time.”
If only she’d been his queen. How very different would his life be now? “I understand how that might be a bit of a sticky wicket for you, but I would prefer that you think of us as equals.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment, but it was clear from the worry in her gaze that something heavier was on her heart. “That’s a hard thing, but I’ll do my best.”
He had a feeling he knew the source of that worry. “And I’ll do this. I’ll promise that nothing you do and nothing that happens between us will cause me to void your indenture. I know you’re concerned for your father’s well-being.”
“I am. Thank you.”
“Does that make the thought of kissing me again easier?”
She smiled. “Maybe.” Her smile got a little bigger. “So, how about that party idea?”
He groaned.
“You could start small. Just a little dinner party. Amelia and her niece.”
He still didn’t like the idea of the awkwardness that could follow, but he wanted to make Theodora happy. “If I invite Emeranth, then I should invite her beau as well. Deacon Evermore.