Page 114 of Lost Truth
“No. No.” She reached into her purse for a tissue and swiped her face. “I love it. It’s perfect. I just didn’t want to blubber like a baby in front of everyone. I had to come out here to compose myself.”
He let out a relieved breath.
“Thank you for thinking of me. For thinking of my father. For being the honorable and kind man you are.”
“It’s nothing.” His face colored. “And I didn’t do it alone. Of course, Reece made all of the food. Nolan designed the invitations, and Abby had them printed, then Mina distributed them to the people who knew your father. If you can believe it, Jude handled the decorations with a few tasteful edits by Reece. Gabe was in charge of parking. And I located the pictures for the entryway board, which I hope you can spend some time looking at. After this event is over, Reece is going to have them made into a memory book for you.”
Cady smiled at him, and the same happiness was beaming through her body. “How did you keep this from me? Wait, when we pulled up there weren’t any cars outside.”
“The invitations encouraged guests to walk if they could, and those who had to drive were instructed to park down the hill. If they needed a ride to the door, Gabe was there to transport them.”
She shook her head. “You guys thought of everything.”
“I hope so, and I hope you’ll want to talk with all of the people who loved your father too.”
She dabbed her eyes with the tissue. “Is my makeup ruined? Do I look okay?”
“There might be one smudge that needs attention.” He moved closer and cupped the back of her head, then swiftly lowered his head to kiss her.
Warm but insistent, much like most of his kisses had been the past few days.
He drew back and chuckled. “Ah, yes. That takes care of the lipstick.”
“By removing it, you mean.” She raised her finger to swipe away the lipstick transferred to his mouth.
He caught her finger in his. “I have a much better way of giving it back to you.”
He looked into her eyes, then slowly lowered his head. His lips touched hers in a tender kiss, not at all like the fierce one that had stolen her lipstick. She liked it, but she needed more. She slid her hand into the back of his hair and pulled his head down. She encouraged him to deepen the kiss, and his arms tightened around her body until she felt as if they were one.
They clung together. Shared kiss after kiss until the door opened.
“Oh, I see.” Reece’s voice came from behind Hayden.
Cady jerked away to see her poking her head out of the cracked-open door, a knowing look on her face.
She batted innocent eyelashes at them as if interrupting them was no big deal. “Does this mean you have something else to do and won’t be coming in?”
“No. I can’t wait to talk to everyone.” Cady straightened her shirt. “We just got a little distracted.”
“I’d say that was more than a little.” Reece grinned.
“We’ll be in in a minute,” Hayden said.
“I’ll wait inside, but it seems like you two need a chaperone to make sure you don’t get distracted again.” Reece turned back to the room, her laughter trailing behind as the door closed.
“I need to repair my lipstick for real, before we do exactly what she said and get distracted again.”
“Honestly, now that we’ve accepted our feelings for each other, that wouldn’t be hard to do.”
“It’s freeing to admit the truth, isn’t it?” She reached into her purse for her lipstick.
He swooped his arm in and drew her close before she could locate the tube. “Let’s promise right here and right now we’ll always tell each other the truth.”
She raised her arms around his neck. “Not like my dad. Not like the secret he kept. That truth was almost lost and had to wait for his passing to be revealed.”
“Exactly.” Hayden gestured between them. “Me and you. The truth. Always.”
“Okay then,” she said. “Here’s my truth at this moment. I’m excited to talk to my dad’s friends, but right now, I want to kiss you more than I want to go through the door.”
He started to lower his head. “We can do both. And honey, whenever this particular truth comes to you, no worries. I’m more than glad to help you out.”
She laughed, but he silenced it with a kiss. A kiss that meant a future together. A kiss that promised a lifetime of love, and a kiss she’d never thought she would find in her lifetime.
