Page 99 of One Midnight Kiss

“She did, but not until I groveled a bit.”

I sighed contentedly, nestling into his side. “It’s been such a crazy year, hasn’t it? All the ups and downs… I can’t believe we made it through.”

He brushed a strand of hair away from my face. “You got your Paris prince,” he said quietly, his lips quirking into a smile. “And I got my mystery woman.”

I’d spent so long believing that the man I’d met here last year was a perfect fantasy, someone I’d never find again. And yet, here he was, flesh and blood and everything I could’ve ever hoped for.

“I thought I’d never see you again,” I admitted, my voice barely more than a whisper.

He raised an eyebrow. “Well, you never gave me your number.”

I laughed, a little embarrassed. “That’s not true! I left you a sticky note.”

He frowned, his expression puzzled. “A sticky note?”

“Yeah,” I said, sitting up a bit. “I went back to your apartment that night. I put my number on your door.”

His eyes widened, and he cursed under his breath. “That’s what that was?”

I blinked at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

“I went out, got wasted, and ended up staying at Wilder’s place. When I got back to my apartment, I saw something stuck to my shoe. I didn’t realize it was your number. I left it on the counter.”

I gaped at him, then burst out laughing. “You’re kidding.”

He shook his head, grinning ruefully. “I swear. Sorry.”

I smacked his chest playfully. “You idiot! I was waiting for you to call me. I thought I messed everything up. Wait, did you show up last night to meet the other woman?”

“No, I knew it was you. Christa told me you had gone to Paris. She told me about the man you met last year. I figured it out.”

“You got an invitation,” I said.

“No, I didn’t. But I was determined to get here. Get to you. I figured you figured out it was me. If I didn’t show up, you weren’t going to ever talk to me. I had to hack into the shell company hosting the party.”

I froze, staring at him. “You what?”

He grinned like a mischievous kid who’d gotten away with something. “I had to get creative. I found the guest list and managed to buy an invitation off one of the patrons. Nothing was going to keep me out of that party.”

I laughed, pressing a hand to my forehead. “You really did hunt me down.”

He tilted my chin up, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “You’re worth it.”

“You know, now we don’t even have to pretend to break up for the public. This is real. This is ours.”

He kissed the top of my head. “It is,” he agreed. “And I can’t wait to see you as my bride.”

I closed my eyes, letting the tears fall as I kissed him, slow and sweet and full of every emotion I couldn’t put into words. He kissed me back.

When we finally broke apart, I pressed my forehead to his, both of us breathing hard. “This is crazy,” I whispered, laughing a little through the tears. “I cannot believe it was you the whole time.”

“Fate,” he said. “I’m officially a believer.”