“And that I’ve sat here at this bloody party all night pretending like I fit in, watching you speak to a ton of people I don’t know? Watching other men talk to you like they know that all they have to do is talk about house plants to get your attention?”

“Miles—”

“I kept my distance from you because if I didn’t, I knew that at some point, I would fall in love with you.” He exhaled.

“Miles—”

“And I’m not. Not right now. But if you don’t get that message and stop this nonsense, I will fall in love with you, Gabriella.”

Oh, my gosh.

His gaze bore into mine with an intensity I hadn’t seen before. “And if I do, I don’t know if I’ll be able to let you go when your father finds somebody he deems worthy of you. Some bloody duke or earl or whoever else can give you the kind of life you’re accustomed to.”

“Miles! For God’s sake, are you going to kiss me or are you going to keep talking until I freeze to death out here?”

“You want me to kiss you?”

“No, I asked you just for shits and giggles.”

“I—”

“If you don’t kiss me, then I’m going to kiss you, you blithering idiot.”

He stared at me, lips parted, indecision swirling in his eyes.

Oh, sod this.

Like any good, strong-willed lady with impeccable manners, I grabbed his tie and pulled his lips down to mine.

They were just as soft as I’d imagined them to be.

I pulled away, dipping my chin, and slowly released my grip on his tie. “I—”

Miles framed my face with his hands and pulled me back, closing his lips over mine. I slowly reached up and slid my hands up his chest, and the kiss deepened as I stepped closer to him.

Every nerve ending in my body exploded. The feeling of his rough palms against my cheeks, of his firm chest under my fingertips, of his lips slowly yet firmly moving across mine was the thing of dreams.

It had to be illegal for a kiss to feel this good.

I could have been flying for all I knew. I just wanted to grab onto him and not let go.

I wrapped my arms around his neck as he lowered his hands, one to cup the back of my neck and the other wrapped around my body, holding me so close to him that there wasn’t a single whisper of space between us.

That worked for me.

So well.

How had we reached this point?

Nothing seemed to make sense, not while he was holding me like this. I didn’t understand it but I knew I didn’t want it to stop.

I kind of wanted him to kiss me all night.

And you know what? If he wasn’t going to stop kissing me, then I sure as hell wouldn’t be the one to stop him.

***

I stifled a yawn with my lower arm as I walked into the kitchen. It was already ten a.m., and my tutor had finally emailed over the results of our garden design assignments.