Page 14

The stinging behind my eyes shocks the hell out of me. I brush a nonexistent wrinkle out of his shirt and swallow hard a few times to get myself under control. “Thank you for coming to find me and getting the conversation started.”

His gaze searches mine. “So.”

“Yes?”

“If the interruption hadn’t happened, the night would’ve ended very differently, yeah?”

Tilting my head, I consider his words then nod. “We would’ve kissed.”

He inclines his head in agreement. “What do we want to do with that information?”

We watch each other. And I’m not sure what to say.

Do I ask why he wanted to kiss me? What if he asks me?

I can’t tell him I’ve been in love with him since we were fifteen.

And if we act on that information… I don’t want the most important first kiss of my life to take place in a drafty basement, surrounded by skeletons and Halloween decorations.

I clear my throat, blow out a breath, and take a chance. “Let’s go somewhere else. We need to continue this conversation, but not with my dog staring at us. Come with me.”

Bram grabs the lattes and follows Bandit and me up the stairs. “We can reunite Bandit and Hades. They’ll keep each other occupied.”

I lead the way outside. A brisk wind blows, rustling the leaves and scattering more across the lawn. Bandit bounds through them as he races around us. Bram chuckles, dodging my darting dog during the walk to my house.

Hades must hear the key in the lock because he’s waiting by the door. Bandit rockets past me to greet him. With wagging tails, barks, licks and sniffs, he and Bandit are ecstatic to be with each other .

Leaning his shoulder into mine, Bram gestures at the dogs. “They’re like us, always happy to be together. Do you want to go somewhere in particular?”

“Anywhere outside guarantees nosy people.” After a quick scan of my space, I find the answer. “The living room. We can close the French doors for privacy.”

“Hold that thought.” Bram grabs two puzzle toys from the floor and strides into the kitchen. The dogs follow him. Carrying the lattes, I go too.

He inserts two of the peanut butter dog cookies Charlie baked for Hades into the toys.

The dogs sit by his feet, their tails wagging.

Smiling at me, he rolls one toy across the floor and Hades takes off after it.

He sends Bandit’s ball in the opposite direction.

“That might hold their attention for a while.”

“Good thinking.”

After washing his hands, he turns to me. “Saturday night had another first.”

My gaze falls to his hand, extending toward mine. I suck in a breath as he links our fingers. “Yeah, we’ve never done that.”

His grip tightens. “It was instinctual. And then what I’d done hit me. Very unprofessional, having romantic thoughts when I’m working.”

“Romantic, huh?” I flex my fingers, exploring the feel of his hand in mine. “These thoughts, are they new?”

He opens his mouth, then closes it, and after a moment’s hesitation, glances at the dogs. “We should go into the other room.”

We walk together, side by side, into the living room, then separate to each close a French door and draw the curtains over the multi-paned windows.

I choose the small sofa under the stained-glass window that catches the sunset.

Bram sits beside me and takes my hand between both of his. His expression is as serious as I’ve ever seen him. “I’ve had those thoughts for a while. I don’t know when they started. One day I realized they were just… there.”

I’m stunned and flattered. He’s had feelings. For me . Wow. There’s a tingling over my skin, like every cell in my body is cheering. “I’ve had romantic thoughts about you too.”

Relief flashes across his features before the gleam in his eyes and spreading smile take over. “For how long?”

“Longer than a while.” It’s the truth. It’s also way too early to tell him that my romantic thoughts run as deep and strong as they do, but I can give him another truth. “I was worried about you coming here, because I didn’t think I’d be able to hide how I felt. And I was right.”

Tracing patterns on my palm, Bram nods. “It’s made for an angsty start for me too. But now that it’s out in the open…”

“Yeah…” I draw the word out, ending it like a question.

He shifts on the cushion, adjusting the angle of his body toward mine, and his blue eyes shimmer with passion. “What do we do about it?”

My heartbeat ticks harder as I gaze at Bram. My best friend, who I’ve known for over half my life, who knows me better than anyone, is about to become even more to me. “I think we have our first kiss.”

He releases his hold on my hand, but not my gaze, and raises his hand to cup my cheek. My eyes flutter closed at the soft press of his fingers, and it takes me back to that moment under the trees in the chilly night air.

His borrowed flannel is open to the fourth button, exposing the graphic tee beneath the layer of plaid.

I lay my hand on his chest, over his heart.

The material is soft under my fingers and the heat of his skin seeps through his T-shirt.

When I trace the edge of his collar and my thumb brushes the skin at the base of his throat, he groans and leans in.

His gaze jumps to my mouth and he slides his other arm around me.

The need to touch more pulses through me. I trace my fingertips over the swell of his lips, his stubbled cheeks and soft blond hair. I know every inch of his face, yet it’s like I’m seeing him in a whole new way.

With every breath, we get closer. I tilt my head, he wets his lips, and we watch each other until the image blurs and our lips finally meet.

His lips are soft yet firm, and he tastes like the maple latte. I can’t believe I’m kissing my best friend, or that he’s holding me like he’ll never let go. Wrapping him in my embrace takes the kiss to another level. Bram feels so good in my arms.

The kiss is everything I dreamed it would be. And I’ve dreamed of it a lot.

Bram raises his head. His whispered, “Trev,” is filled with wonder. So is his soft expression and the way he gently brushes his fingers through my hair.

I’m content to hold him, our arms around each other, basking in his embrace.

He rests his forehead against mine. “So what happens now?”

“We reheat our lattes and check on the dogs.”

His laugh vibrates into my chest. “I meant with this. Us.”

“Whatever you want.” I mean that.

Bram draws back so we can see each other clearly. He bites his lip. “And if I want more of what we just did?”

“Then you’re in luck, because I do too.”

A smile lights his face. He presses a kiss to my lips, then my cheek, then my temple, and settles against me, so we’re side by side once more. From this vantage point, we can see the carriage house through the window on the opposite wall.

His focus floats in that direction. “What’s the haunted house like?”

“Each room provides a different experience. Alaric and I built dividers that create mazes in the rooms. They’re foldable so we can change the layout every year.

Our employees wear costumes, but stay in the background, monitoring the rooms in case they need to help someone or guide people to the next rooms. We don’t use jump scares.

It’s more of a psychological experience.

Light frequencies that make people uncomfortable.

Specific types of music and sound effects.

Things like whispering someone’s name while they’re walking through the house and they can’t tell where it’s coming from. ”

“That’s creepy.”

“Exactly.” I can’t stop my fingers from tracing the lines and squares of color in the flannel over his pec.

“We utilize the dark a lot. The unknown is what’s scary.

Cold breezes that seem to come out of nowhere.

Scents. Projected images. Playing with the lights.

There’s a trick we do with fishing line, when people walk through, it feels like spider webs. It’s really atmospheric.”

“Do you keep them set up as bedrooms?” His arm wrapped across my back is a welcome weight and his hand, warm and comfortable on my hip, squeezes and flexes over and over.

“No. We remove the beds, TVs, and the antique furniture. The breakdown and removal takes two days, and then we’re ready to start bringing in the props and other furniture and transforming the space, which takes the rest of the week.

It’s a lot of lifting and carrying things up and down from the attic and the basement. ”

He lets out a low whistle. “It sounds like a big job. I can help.”

“I’ll take you up on that offer. Thank you.” I stretch into him and when he turns his head, take the kiss he offers. “I should probably get back over there. There are a lot of props and equipment to check.”

“I’ll come, and bring the lattes.”

The backbreaking work I’d been dreading doesn’t seem as bad knowing Bram will be at my side.

We stand, pulling each other up, smiling as we go. I’m not naive enough to think a kiss is anything more than a kiss.

Except, of course, when it is.

Mine meant more. And maybe I’m a fool to hope that Bram’s did too.