Liam went utterly still, his eyes intense, brows knitted together in a puzzled frown. She moved to step past him, but he caught her arm in a gentle grip.
“Daisy . . . wait.”
She spun to face him. “I don’t owe you anything.”
“What if I beg?” He tipped his head to the side, his seductive smile so achingly familiar her heart squeezed in her chest. This was the Liam she’d fallen for when she was ten years old. Reckless. Charming. Handsome. Charisma flowing off him in waves. Despite her antipathy toward him, it was impossible not to still feel the pull of attraction.
“Daisy!” Madison waved from the crowd, tugging a reluctant Orson along; in the distance, relentless like the tide, came Salena Auntie and poor Roshan.
There was nowhere to run. No graceful way to extract herself from the situation without losing face. Daisy tipped her head back and groaned.
Liam frowned. “What’s wrong?”
Gritting her teeth she gestured to the left. “That’s my aunt coming toward us with the man she wants me to marry. And in three seconds, we’ll be accosted by my old boss. She’s with my ex, Orson. I got him a job at my last start-up, and the next thing I knew, she’d stolen him away. This day is getting worse by the second.”
Liam twisted his lips to the side, considering. “I can see why you—”
“Shh.” She held up a warning hand. “I’m praying for a natural disaster—earthquake, flood, tornado, murder wasps, even a plague of locusts will do.”
“How about a kiss?”
Daisy frowned. “How is that going to fix anything?”
His gaze dropped to her lips. “You can’t get married if you’re seeing someone else, and you’ll be able to show your ex and your boss that you’ve moved on. It’s a perfect solution.”
It would have been perfect ten years ago at the senior prom. She’d imagined it night after night. The shock and awe in the faces of her classmates. The jacket he would place over her shoulders when she shivered. The gentle squeeze of his hand as he walked her to the dance floor. His arms around her, warm and strong. The slow, steady beat of the music. His whispered declaration that he’d loved her since the moment they met. And then his lips on her lips . . .
“You are the last man on earth I want to kiss.”
His voice dropped to a low rumble that vibrated through her body. “I would do the kissing.”
Daisy looked back over her shoulder at the approaching storm. It was a perfect solution. She would have her fantasy prom kiss, show Orson and Madison she was no victim, and shut down her matchmaking aunties all in one fell swoop. And after they’d gone, she’d be close enough to knee Liam in the groin.
“Fine. Just one kiss,” she gritted out through clenched teeth. “And there are rules.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He stepped closer, sliding an arm around her waist, crushing the boxes of pads between them.
All her nerves fired at once and she drew in a calming breath, desperately trying to regain her sense of self-possession. “No tongue. No pressure. No open mouth. No roaming hands . . .” Her voice trailed off when his lips moved over her hair. She drew in a sharp breath, inhaling the scent of him—leather and the ocean breeze and something so deeply familiar, longing stirred inside her, melting the ice in her veins.
Bristling, she stiffened against him. She needed that ice. Needed the walls that kept her safe. It had been easy to hate Liam when he was gone, but now that he was here, only a whisper away, it was almost impossible to hold back the feelings that she had buried along with her heart.
“I’ll try not to throw up in your mouth.”
Liam chuckled. “Is that your idea of foreplay?”
“It’s my idea of getting this over with as quickly as possible so I can go back to pretending you don’t exist.”
With a soft growl of amusement, Liam gently cupped her face with his free hand, filling her vision with the face that still haunted her dreams.
Daisy’s heart pounded a staccato beat. “Hurry.”
His lips brushed over hers in a featherlight caress, so gentle and unexpected she forgot to breathe. There was no passion in the kiss. The earth didn’t move, time didn’t stand still, fireworks didn’t fill the sky, not even a single bird twittered around her head. But it was tender and sweet, his lips were soft and gentle, and for the briefest second she was tempted to give in to the heat of sensation and kiss him like she was a lovelorn teenager all over again.
“Daisy! How nice to see you.” Madison’s voice grated over her nerves, pulling her out of the moment. Her defenses slammed back into place and she jerked away.
“Madison.” Turning, Daisy forced a smile and slid one arm around Liam’s waist. He was broad and solid and mouthwateringly hard, like he spent his days pumping weights in the gym. “Nice to see you, too.”
“We’re together.” Liam slid his arm around Daisy’s shoulder and pulled her to his side.
“You’re with him?” Orson’s bushy eyebrows flew up like two dancing caterpillars.
“Oh, Orson.” Daisy leaned into Liam’s side, feigning surprise. “I didn’t see you hiding there behind Madison.”
She made the introductions. Orson glared as he shook Liam’s hand. Madison was too busy checking Liam out to notice that her new boyfriend had spiked a jealousy fever.
“How sweet. Daisy has a new boyfriend.” Madison licked her lips like a predator about to feast.
Daisy’s pulse kicked up a notch and panic fuzzed her brain. She had no interest in Liam. That ship had sailed ten years ago on a tide of tears. But she wasn’t about to let Madison steal another man away.
“We’re actually . . . engaged.” The word dropped from her mouth before she could catch it, and she shot Liam a frantic sideways glance silently begging him to play along.
“Engaged?” Orson’s voice cracked. “We only broke up a short while ago.”
“When you know, you know.” Liam pressed a kiss to her temple, jumping on the bandwagon without hesitation.
“‘Engaged’?” Salena Auntie pushed past Orson to stand right in front of her, red purse clutched to her chest. “You’re engaged? Does your father know? Who is this boy?” She turned and squeezed Roshan’s arm. “I didn’t know. I thought she was available.”
“Um . . .” Lying to her aunt wasn’t part of her impromptu plan, but Orson and Madison were watching with avid fascination. “This is Liam.”
“Lemon?” Salena Auntie’s forehead wrinkled.