Page 23 of For Love of Liberty

Problem was—she didn’t want to say no. Because the feelings Finn McShane unleashed in her were too strong, too real, too much of what she’d longed for since she’d first met him so many years ago.

But could she trust him? Her heart stuttered in her chest.

“Libby.” His breath tingled her skin, cherry-pie sweet and as ragged as hers. “I’m going to kiss you now, so if that’s not what you want, then please—just push me away.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Please, Libby … don’t push me away …

Both his pulse and time stood still while he awaited her answer, forgetting to breathe as he watched roiling clouds of uncertainty deepen the green of her eyes. Then in a flick of her gaze to his lips and back, he sensed her consent, and tucking an arm to her waist, he slowly drew her onto his bale, closing the distance to caress her lips with his own. A lifetime of craving this girl flashed through his body like a desert heat wave, and swallowing a low groan, he molded his mouth to hers with an ache so real, he knew she was the only cure. “Libby,” he whispered, pulling away to cradle her head in his hands, “I have feelings for you that go way beyond friendship or festivals, so please tell me we can start over and see where this goes.”

She blinked several times, almost as if to clear the haze from her eyes, and his heart screeched to a stop. But when he saw the sweet curve of her beautiful mouth, his pulse took off in a sprint, unleashing a grin on his face he swore stretched ear to ear. “Please tell me that’s a yes, Miss O’Shea, because if not, I’ll have to resign as co-chair since keeping my distance will be impossible to do.”

She nibbled the edge of her lips with an innocent smile, and it took everything in him not to join her, nibbling and tasting that mouth that forever invaded his thoughts. Her eyes fairly glowed as she gave him a brief nod, and there was no way he could stop the hoarse moan that scraped past his throat when he kissed her again. Sweet thunder, he was barely able to believe that he and Liberty O’Shea were on speaking terms, much less kissing like this, the heady taste of her all but melting his spurs.

Like you and Jo Beth?

Finn froze, the warmth of Libby’s body against his sending an avalanche of guilt sliding right down his back, icier than the Sierras in a Nevada snowstorm. Another groan rose in his throat, but this one was because he knew he had no business taking liberties with Libby. Not when he’d been seeing mainly Jo Beth, no matter how casually or infrequent, giving into Milo’s relentless prodding that Finn needed some fun in his life. True, Jo Beth wasn’t the only girl he spent time with, but as Milo’s girlfriend’s best friend, she was the one Finn saw and liked the most.

And kissed the most?

Finn winced inwardly at the prick of his conscience. Innocent kisses with Jo Beth or any other girl had never bothered him before, but suddenly kissing Libby made them seem downright wrong. Because Libby deserved better. Shame warmed the back of his neck.

And so did Jo Beth.

He’d always prided himself on steering clear of marriage, making good and sure women knew he had no intention of courting till his land was paid off and his homestead built and settled. But looking at Libby right now—half-lidded eyes, swollen mouth, and shallow breathing from parted lips that were calling him home—he knew his days of bachelorhood were about to be cut off at the pass. With a gentle grip of her arms, he held her at bay, painfully aware that she deserved far more than a man who flirted and kissed other women, and by the grace of God, he would give it to her.

Fidelity. Marriage. And babies galore ...

But first he needed to end it with Jo Beth, then give it some time to ease Jo’s ruffled feathers.

And pay off your loan?

Finn’s jaw tightened along with his conscience, wishing he’d broken it off with Jo Beth like he’d wanted to when rumors started to fly that he was her beau. And he would have if Milo hadn’t badgered him into seeing Jo Beth more often so the four of them could be “friends” who were social together and just had a little fun.

Finn stifled a grunt. A “little fun,” right. Only “friends” didn’t tempt and tease with kisses like Jo Beth always did, no matter how many times he told her he had no plans to get married. But he was a man, for pity’s sake, and one used to enjoying the affections of women before the Poppys had convinced him to curb his ways. And now he’d boxed himself in but good, putting so many things at risk.

Jo Beth.

Her father.

A loan that was almost paid off.

And Liberty …

A knot of conviction hitched in his throat. “Libby,” he whispered, cupping her face while his thumbs glided the soft silk of her skin, “please forgive me for taking advantage of the way I feel about you, all alone up here in this loft. But I never dreamed I’d ever have a chance with you, Libs, so I guess I kind of”—he scrubbed the back of his neck with an awkward grin quickly tempered by guilt—“got carried away. But now that I know you feel the same way, I’d like to take it real slow to ward off any speculation about your reputation or mine, as co-chairs of a committee smack dab in the public eye.” He battled a gulp, downright impressed with his willpower to not devour her all over again. “Do you … understand?”

She blinked several times as if she didn’t while that creamy throat convulsed with a nervous bob, and he wished more than anything he could just kiss all her hesitation away. But he owed her more than kisses.

He owed her the truth.

Or at least most of it.

A tiny crimp appeared above her nose. “I’m not exactly sure what you mean by ‘real slow,’ Finn …”

He skimmed a hand down that silky copper hair he’d longed to touch for too many years, fingers tingling like his heart for this girl he so wanted to make his own. “What I mean, Libby, is as co-chairs, I think we have a responsibility to be professional. And trust me, Miss O’Shea,” he said with a crooked smile he hoped would help diminish the confusion in her eyes, “my feelings for you are anything but.”

A silent sigh of relief leached out when a soft blush bloomed on her face, tipping that glorious mouth into the sweetest of smiles. “That said,” he continued in what he hoped was a more “professional” tone, “I’d like to wait until a little while after the festival to start seeing you publicly if that’s all right.”