He exhaled heavily.“I… I’m not even sure why right now, because all of this feels so right, but I don’t want to get carried away.Not when we still need to figure out some things.”
Guilt hummed through her body.So true.
“You’re just too easy to kiss.”
“Ditto.”
His look was deep as he studied her.Then he leaned forward, touched her chin.“I’m sorry for making that red.”
She clutched his hand, pressed a kiss to his fingers.Yes, there’d be some explaining to do once Mom caught sight of it.
“We should go soon.You’re working tomorrow, right?”
Darn.Yes, she was.
She shivered, and he immediately drew near, hugging her tight until she finally relaxed.
“We can make this work,” he murmured in her ear.“I promise.”
She nodded, keeping the words she knew needed to be said locked inside.
Kyle might promise all he liked, but until she told him the truth about Bella, this relationship was an illusion.
And she was okay with that, just for a moment longer.She closed her eyes as he rested his chin on her head, and held her near.
She couldn’t lose this connection.There’d be time enough for uncomfortable truths.But she couldn’t spoil this.Not yet.
CHAPTER14
Kyle lay in bed, hands clasped beneath his head, thinking over the night before.So much had happened, so much had gone right.He’d lived his dream.
And yet… and yet…
Something still didn’t quite click.Sure, their physical connection was as powerful as it had ever been, but it felt like a puzzle piece had been shaped a little differently, so something didn’t quite match up as it once had.
Was it the fact he’d moved in too fast, cutting her off with kisses before she’d had a chance to say whatever it was she wanted to say?Maybe.He’d apologized for that last night and asked what it was she wanted to say.She’d said it could wait.So yes, there was something holding her back.
And yes, her mom and his parents were likely to kick up a stink, so that wasn’t great.He’d been praying that they might all come to terms with him and Gen being back together, but it would take a lot of grace.
But even his prayers felt like they were hitting the ceiling.
His phone buzzed with a message.He smiled, glanced at it, then his smile faded.Ryan.Wanting to know if he’d talked with Gen yet about salvation.
Huh.No.There had been no time for that yet.He had needed to make sure they were still on the same page physically before getting into the spiritual stuff.
What would happen if she didn’t want to talk about God?What if she rejected Kyle because she rejected God and Kyle’s determination to live for God and not himself?His chest tensed.Would he really have to follow Ryan’s lead and let her go until she found faith herself?
His phone buzzed with a reminder notification of the message just sent.Kyle knew that Ryan would keep hounding him until he responded, so he replied with a
Not yet.Soon.
Then he muted notifications from him, not wanting Ryan to be the conscience Kyle didn’t need.
Was that why his prayers felt like they weren’t getting through?Maybe.Okay, probably.How could he say he was following God if he ignored those little inner nudges that might just be the Holy Spirit’s leading?
He winced, his heart and flesh wanting to relive those moments when fire seemed to flame between Gen and himself.That wasn’t wrong, was it?Why did Christians have to complicate things all the time?What was wrong with love being love?
And yet… and yet…
