Page 38 of Big Girl Panties

Our bodies moved together, and when he pressed his hips against me, I felt exactly how much he wanted me. His mouth moved to my neck, and I was ready to forget about dinner entirely when…

Tap. Tap.

We froze like teenagers caught making out in the school hallway.

"Is everything okay in there?" Leilani's worried voice drifted through the door. "I feel terrible about the pie situation."

Matt rested his forehead against mine, both of us breathing like we'd run a marathon. "We're fine," he called out, his voice slightly rough. He cleared his throat. "Be out in a minute."

"Okay. Just let me know if you need anything else."

He pressed a soft kiss to my forehead, then stepped back, running a hand through his hair. "I got a little carried away."

We both got carried away, and I wanted to get carried away again somewhere with better privacy and fewer interruptions. "We should probably clean up now."

Matt grabbed a towel and worked on his shirt while I slid off the counter and turned back to the mirror. The woman staring back at me looked thoroughly kissed and slightly dazed. Her lips were swollen, her hair was a mess, not just from the pie, and she was smiling like she'd just discovered the secret to happiness.

"Need help cleaning the pie off of you?" Matt asked, though his eyes dropped to the obvious bulge in his pants.

"I think I'd better handle this solo." I glanced at his situation, fighting the urge to smile.

"Yeah, probably a good call."

After he left, I stared at my reflection and grinned. This was what it felt like to be wanted, really wanted. Not tolerated, not convenient, but desired. Matt looked at me like he was drowning and I was oxygen.

I grabbed the towel and started working on the pie stains, my mind wandering. I wished I'd met him before I got so broken down that I questioned whether I deserved someone like him. Before I stopped believing in my own worth. Before I became afraid of trusting my own judgment.

But maybe that was the point. Maybe I needed to go through all that to appreciate this, to appreciate him.

I met my own eyes in the mirror and smiled. "You're beautiful," I whispered to my reflection. "You're enough. You deserve love."

I took a deep breath. "And it's okay to believe he really wants you."

I dropped the towel, squared my shoulders, and opened the door. Time to face the family, pie stains and all.

Chapter 15

Dancing in the Rain

The full moon bathed everything in silver as I sat at Niko's patio table, desperately trying not to stare at Brooke like some lovesick teenager. Epic fail on that front, I was practically drooling into my Corona while she charmed my entire family with her adorable laugh and the way she kept tucking that one rebellious strand of hair behind her ear.

A warmth spread through my chest as I watched her gesture animatedly while telling some story. But with it came a twinge of panic. I'd never felt this way about anyone before, and definitely not this fast. This was the kind of feelings that made men do stupid things.

"So, Brooke," Leilani leaned forward and refilled Brooke's wine glass with suspicious generosity. "Matt tells us you own a café downtown."

Oh no. Here we go.

Brooke's fingers did this adorable nervous dance around her wine stem. "Yeah, my dad wanted me to follow in his lawyer footsteps, but my heart was more pastries and coffee than depositions and court dates."

"And your mother?" Leilani's eyebrow arched like she was conducting a federal investigation. "Law career pusher, too?"

I jumped in before my sister-in-law could demand Brooke's credit score and childhood pet names. "Okay, dial down the FBI routine there, Lei."

CHOKE.

Brooke's wine went down the wrong pipe, and I couldn't help but laugh as her cheeks turned the most amazing shade of pink. God, she was beautiful when she was flustered. She was beautiful all the time, but the flustered thing was particularly devastating to my self-control.

"Restroom," Brooke announced, smoothing her dress as she stood. "Need to... yes."