There Goes My Heart (The Sullivans #20) - Bella Andre Page 0,60

didn’t notice her hands shaking as Cassie gave them their goody bags, along with a big hug.

Flynn shook Zara’s hand and then Rory’s. “Thanks again for giving Ruby such a great afternoon.”

“Anytime,” Zara said in what she hoped was a normal voice. “Your little girl is a delight in every way.”

Normally on the way out to the car, Zara would have shoved several of Cassie’s homemade marmalades into her mouth. But she was so stunned by her realization that she was in love with Rory that she could barely walk a straight line, let alone multitask by chewing and swallowing hard candy too.

She could feel Rory’s eyes on her, but he didn’t speak until he had turned on the ignition and was heading down the driveway. “Your place or mine?”

Zara shot him a confused look. “I thought you had to get back to your workshop—or take care of something at home.”

“Nope. I just wanted some alone time with you. I was hoping you want that too.”

Of course she did. But after last night, she already knew that she was incapable of keeping anything from him. If she spent tonight with him—and especially if they made love, which they surely would, given that they couldn’t keep their hands off each other—she might blurt out how she felt.

“Zara?” He took his eyes off the road long enough to give her a concerned glance. “What’s wrong?”

Oh God.

She couldn’t just up and make such a reckless declaration to him, could she?

Shouldn’t she take some time—take a step back—analyze her feelings more carefully?

Shouldn’t she make sure she’d looked at things from all angles before she went and handed over her heart on a silver platter?

But she realized she couldn’t do it. Couldn’t keep it from him.

Not when he had come to mean so much to her.

Not when he had come to mean everything to her.

“I’m in love with you.”

He pulled over and hit the brakes so hard, Zara’s seat belt barely held her in her seat.

“Say that again.”

Baring her soul to him in a way she’d never thought she would with anyone, yet again she said, “I’m in love with you. I just realized it when—”

Before she could finish her sentence, the wonderful, sweet press of his lips stopped her words. And then his hands were unbuckling her seat belt and then his too so that he could put his arms around her and pull her against him.

“I love you too.”

The relief—and the joy—in his voice poured into her, filling all the shadowy cracks with light.

“You do?” she asked.

“Of course I do.”

“But I never thought we would—”

He kissed away whatever list of reasons she might have tried to put up against the odds of this ever happening. It wasn’t until a car honked as it drove past that he drew back.

“I want to take you home and make love to you, Zara.”

“I want that too.” She truly did—more than she’d ever wanted anything in her entire life.

And as he held tightly to her hand for the rest of their drive, it felt as though all her dreams were coming true.

Even the ones she hadn’t dared to ask for.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

This was the best day of Rory’s life. No monetary prize or career award could ever compete with hearing Zara say I love you.

Once they arrived at his house, in one smooth move, he pushed his seat back as far as it would go while pulling Zara onto his lap. She laughed as she straddled him, and he loved the way her laughter filled his entire body.

In the blink of an eye, the passion sparking between them as they kissed ignited into full-blown flames. As he ran kisses from her mouth down her neck and then over the upper swell of her breasts exposed in her tank top, she ground against him. Gripping her hips to increase the delicious friction, he drank in her gasp of pleasure.

Most other couples, on the eve of declaring their love for each other, would surely celebrate with rose petals and champagne and soft whispers. But making out in his car struck Rory as exactly right for them. Nothing about their relationship had been ordinary—and something told him it never would be, thank God.

As they broke their kiss to yank off each other’s shirts, he needed her to know something else. “You make me so damned happy.”

“You make me happy too.” She pressed her palms flat over his chest, then slowly trailed her fingers down toward his abdominal muscles. “And not just