His eyes widened with her kiss, but he quickly laughed as he put the ring on her finger and tossed the box behind him. A warm smile on his face, he rested his hands on her hips. “It’s a perfect fit. And you’re weird, too,” he said.

“Is that all you can say about me? Competent, generous, and weird?”

“Hey.” He laughed, pulling her a little closer by the hips. “I love competence. I could watch you knead bread all day. But”—he leaned over and spoke into her neck—“I missed some other descriptors. You’re sexy. You always smell fantastic, and you have the most amazing curly hair I’ve ever seen. You’re so cute when you’re thinking hard and you bite your lip and I just want to pull it out with my teeth. And don’t even get me started on your feet. I’ll never understand how anyone could think you’re unmemorable.”

Reena blushed. For a split second, her traitorous insecurities wondered if he only said these things to please her father. But when he lifted his head and she saw the sincerity in those intense eyes, she trusted him. She trusted this. She looped her arms behind his neck and steadied herself. “Shut up, Nadim,” she said, before lowering her lips to his.

This kiss wasn’t like their last one. It felt more like a question—an intentional action instead of getting caught in a moment. Because though she had enough confidence to kiss him, her self-doubt prevented her from showing him exactly how much she wanted him.

He apparently had no such reservations. He growled from deep in his throat before lifting his knees to slide her even closer, eliminating all space between them. His hands trailed up from her hips to her waist as his most rakish smile yet transformed his face.

“You kissed me,” he said.

“I did.” She smiled.

His arms raised, one to the small of her back and the other behind her neck as he leaned in closely, but didn’t touch. He just stared for a few moments as the air around them seemed to crackle with electricity. She bit her lip.

“So, it’s open season? I can kiss you, too?” he asked.

She nodded.

Slowly, he lifted his hand to her mouth and pulled her lip out from between her teeth. “I didn’t think you wanted this. It’s not why I bought you the ring,” he whispered, his hand lightly stroking her cheek. He breathed a sigh. “I bought it to apologize for thinking of you this way … This is complicated, yeah? And I really don’t want to mess it up, but … ” He leaned in close again, his hands stroking the skin on the back of her neck. “I dreamed you wanted me. Tell me that you do.”

She did, but she preferred actions to words. “Kiss me.”

His smile widened seconds before his lips claimed hers. And this kiss was like the one on Monday—completely enveloping. She didn’t know why she’d waited—she should have come here and kissed him every night since that first kiss. Actually, they should have done this weeks ago. Intense and enthusiastic, he had one hand on the back of her neck and the other rested on her cheek as he all but devoured her whole. She wrapped her legs around his waist and finally ran her fingers over that velvety cropped hair. He moaned in appreciation.