Page 32 of Deadline for Love

Nathan sighed loudly and leaned back on the bench, his grip on my hips loosening. “Just think about it. It's an open offer.”

We stayed quietly next to each other until I decided it was time to go. I enjoyed his closeness and felt safe. But we soon arrived back at the restaurant to pick up Amara's car before he followed me back to her house.

I looked at Nathan as we exited our cars; he still didn’t appear well since he’d talked about his sister.

“I know you say I shouldn’t be thanking you all the time, but I can’t help it.”

I stated, giving him a faint smile, which was more like a slight wince that disappeared. “Thank you so much.”

I moved closer to him until I kissed his smooth cheek. His brows shot up, and he stared at me in surprise.

“Good night, Nathan. See you tomorrow.”

A gentle smile spread across his lips, and his following comment made me chuckle. “That's a hell of a way to get me out of my head, though here would have been even more effective.” He pointed at his full lips, which looked inviting, but I hesitated and shook my head.

But then Nathan placed his hand on my face and pulled me back towards him easily until our lips were dangerously close, with only inches between us.

His hot breath brushed over my mouth, making my skin tingle. My face heated up. And when he closed the last remaining space between us, my heart started beating fast and hard.

He gently kissed my cheek but was close to the corner of my mouth he almost brushed my lips.

It was a sweet, longing, and affectionate kiss.

He slowly let go of me, and I left feeling dreamy.

Chapter 11

“Finally, you’re here,” Amara murmured, hugging me tightly.

There was something unusual about her behavior, and I noticed that she still seemed unwell.

“Have you eaten anything?” I asked, pushing her with me in my arms towards her modern living room.

“I’m not hungry,” she whined as we plopped on the sofa.

Amara’s home was large and spacious; she had invested much time in it but planned to sell the house as she and Justin got married. Speaking of Justin. “Where’s your fiancé?”

“He’s not here yet…” she mumbled.

An alarm echoed in my mind because it was strange that Justin wasn’t with her. They were usually inseparable.

“And I think he’s going to spend the night with his family tonight.”

I pushed Amara out of my arms and looked at her face after her statement. Her eyes were already filled with tears, and the corners of her mouth were pulled down.

“What happened?”

She took a while before she started to speak, and with every word, tears rolled down her face. “He wanted me to go and stay with his family for the weekend. But I didn’t want to with everything going on.’’

I brushed away a tear, and she snuggled into my hand. Amara has always been sensitive and has a big heart but seeing her crying made me sad.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay,” I whispered, but she shook her head.

“Bella… Justin and I have been having little arguments for weeks, and the closer we get to the wedding, the more I worry that it might be too soon.”

“Are you getting cold feet?”

She slapped my shoulder and then hugged me again.