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“Kiss me like you mean it.” He angled his head toward the paparazzi outside the window.
She let out a resigned breath.
He moved his lips to her ear. “Sorry kissing me is such a hardship.”
A hint of a smile played across her lips, and she grabbed the fabric of his shirt and tugged him to her, planting her lips hard against his.
He was taken aback as her lips moved, momentarily stealing his breath before he became an active participant in the kiss. Her mouth was heaven, and she was a really good kisser. Just the right amount of pressure, perfect give and take. Their wedding kiss had been nice but chaste. This was different in the very best way.
Someone cleared their throat, and they pulled apart.
Merritt covered her mouth with her hand as she looked up at the waitress. Flushed cheeks looked beautiful on her.
“Sorry to interrupt.”
“No apologies necessary,” Gus replied.
“Still in the honeymoon phase. That’s nice.” The waitress smiled at them and took their drink order.
Gus watched the paparazzi outside, wondering where the pictures of them would end up. For some reason, he wanted to see them. He wanted to see how she looked when she was kissing him. Because even though it was just for show, it hadn’t felt pretend at all.
TWENTY-TWO
Merritt couldn’t seem to form a coherent thought after the waitress left the table. Her stomach was still a mess of butterflies, and her face felt like it was on fire. That kiss was nothing like the kiss on their wedding day. She hadn’t meant to let it go so far. She only wanted the paparazzi to leave them alone, but now as she sat there watching them out the window, she knew that wasn’t going to happen.
Gus kept his chair close to hers, his arm still around her. “You okay?”
“They’re still out there.” Her eyes were on the men with cameras, loitering outside the place.
“They’re harmless.”
“Are they going to watch us eat?”
“Probably.”
“I feel like an unflattering picture of me with food hanging out of my mouth is going to show up somewhere.”
Gus pushed back on his chair, stood, and held his hand out to her.
“What are you doing?”
He pulled her up from sitting and moved her chair to the opposite side of the table with the back facing the window then did the same for his chair.
She sat down and smiled up at him. “Thank you. That’s better, actually.”
“They already got enough of a show.”
Her cheeks colored again. “Right.”
Gus sat down just as the waitress returned with their drinks. He appeared calm and unruffled, which was the exact opposite of how she felt at the moment. And she wondered how many more times they would have to fake affection because it was having more of an effect on her than she expected it to.
They had grown closer over the past few weeks to the point where she enjoyed his company. Being around each other’s families, confiding in each other, and hanging out together every night had bonded them in a way she hadn’t known was possible with him. They had moved past disliking one another and somehow maneuvered comfortably into friendship. And if they were going to keep it that way when this was all over, they were going to have to tread carefully when it came to physical affection.
After a quiet dinner, they headed home, mostly avoiding the paparazzi, who were photographing another celebrity arriving at the restaurant. They always seemed to be looking for someone better to focus their cameras on, and in this instance, Merritt was thankful for that.
“Dinner was nice,” she said when they walked through the door.
“Yeah, it was. Do you want to watch a movie?”