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“So exciting!” I say. It comes out a bit more enthusiastic than I intended. If I’m to be believed, I need to bring it down a notch.
I feel a little pinch on my thigh. Apparently, Dax agrees.
“When did you first realize you were in love with Dax?”
Think fast. Think fast. “It happened pretty quickly. I had just gotten out of a terrible relationship, and Dax swooped in like a knight in shining armor. He slayed my dragon and rescued the princess. Who wouldn’t fall in love with someone like that?”
The reporter giggles. “Oh my. That is so romantic. Love it. Next question.” She runs her finger down the page. “What do you feel is the biggest point of contention in your relationship? The one thing that is hard for you to get past?”
“Just one?” I pop my hand over my mouth and look at the camera in horror. That was a dumb thing to say. I feel the pinch on my leg again. “Um, just kidding. Dax is perfect, of course. But if there’s one thing, I’d say it’s that he’s stubborn, and he always wants to get his way.”
The reporter chuckles. “I have a feeling you don’t let him get his way too often. That brings me to my next question for you, Jess. What’s the thing you love the most about Dax?”
My breath hitches in my throat and I wring my hands together.
“This one is easy,” I say slowly as I look up at him. “His caring heart. He doesn’t like to admit it, but he would do anything for those he cares about.”
His eyes darken, and the arm around me tightens just enough for me to notice.
The reporter’s voice breaks in. “One last question for you, Jess. If there’s one thing you could change about Dax, what would it be?”
Dax and I are still holding eye contact, and I barely know what I’m saying. “What would I change? Nothing. I love him just the way he is.”
My voice is a quiet whisper. Dax’s gaze lowers to my lips, and it almost seems like he’s thinking of kissing me, though I know it’s a ridiculous thought. Kissing me is the last thing he’d ever want to do. Even so . . .
Like a lovesick idiot, I tilt my head in just the right way, inviting him to swoop down.
I don’t know why I do it. Instinct?
“Awww. Now that I’m a pile of mush, I’m going to ask Dax the same questions.”
Just like that, the imagined moment is gone.
Dax returns his attention to the reporter. “Of course,” he says smoothly, as though we didn’t just have a moment.
Because, of course, we didn’t have a moment. I told him I wanted nothing to do with him. Why the hell would he kiss me?
The reporter taps her notebook. “First question. When did you first realize you were in love with Jess?”
“Do you believe in love at first sight?” he asks. “Because I do. The first time I met her, I knew she was the one. I still vividly recall when we first met. I was in my brother’s office, and he and I were in the middle of an important discussion. She storms into the room and starts giving him hell because of some fight he’d had with her best friend. I tried to butt into the conversation, and I’ll never forget how she looked at me with a look of complete disdain. She put me right into my place. At first, I thought, who the hell does she think she is, talking to me like that? Then, I thought, damn, she’s amazing. I need to get to know her better. And from that point on, I was completely lost, and the only one I wanted to rescue me was Jess.”
The reporter fans herself with her notebook. “Oh my. Is it getting warm in here or what? You two . . . wow. I didn’t think we were going to get an inside scoop today. Okay. Next question. What do you feel is the biggest point of contention in your relationship? The one thing that is hard for you to get past?”
Dax smirks. “She said I’m stubborn? I can promise you, there’s no one more stubborn than Jess. Once her mind is made up, there’s no one that can change it.”
“Not even you?”
“Most definitely not me. Believe me. I’ve tried,” he says.
“You’re doing great. Third question. What’s the thing you love the most about her?”
Dax runs his hand through his hair. “There’s a lot to love about her. If I had to choose, it would be her resilience in a difficult situation and her ability to keep going when most people would quit. That’s a special quality that most people don’t have.”
The reporter nods. “You’re right. That is special. Your final question is the same as I posed to Jess. If there’s one thing you could change about your fiancée, what would it be?”
I feel Dax’s gaze bore into the top of my head, but I can’t let myself face him. I fight to keep my attention firmly on the reporter and not on the guy at my side.
“Not a damn thing,” he says roughly. “She’s perfect.”