Page 59 of Naughty Heart

But I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to get the words out.

Because I was completely, totally stunned.

Standing at the bottom of the staircase, where I’d promised to be waiting for her, I glanced up and saw Evelyn.

She’d made the plans with my sister to come here and get ready for the party tonight.

I had expected she’d look incredible, but I hadn’t been even remotely prepared for what I was looking at now.

Fuck.

Fuck!

I felt like I couldn’t breathe just looking at her. She was stunning.

Seeing her now, one thing became abundantly clear to me—I wanted her.

But I wasn’t interested in a simple fling. I didn’t want just one night with her.

Nope.

I wanted it all. And if the way things were between us now was any indication of how things could be between us in the future, I wanted everything with her for the rest of my life.

It seemed a little crazy to think it was possible to feel that way after such a short time of knowing her, but maybe what they said was true. When you know, you know.

Looking at Evelyn, I knew.

We’d stared at each other for a long time, neither one of us moving, but eventually, I had to move. I couldn’t bear to be so far away from her.

So, I climbed the stairs, never allowing my eyes to leave her.

When I came to a stop in front of her, I took both of her hands in mine and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. I wanted to let my lips linger on her skin a bit, so I could inhale the scent of her longer, but I didn’t want her to freak out. So, I pulled back and shared, “You took my breath away, Evelyn. My God, you look beautiful.”

Her fingers twitched in my hands as something sweet stole over her expression. She smiled back at me. “Thank you, Malcolm. I had some help from Mina. You look very handsome yourself.”

“Thanks,” I replied, my eyes raking over her. I didn’t think I’d be able to look away, even if my life depended on it.

I lifted one of our clasped hands in the air and urged, “Spin around, let me see the back.”

Evelyn’s face lit up as she spun around in the red gown. It was a full-length gown, so I couldn’t see her legs, and yet, I thought she was even sexier.

When I said nothing else after she completed her turn but continued to stare at her, Evelyn asked, “Do you like my dress?”

“I love it. You look amazing, and everybody else at this party is going to be jealous that I get to be there with you.”

She let out a soft laugh. “That’s very sweet of you to say.”

“I wasn’t trying to be sweet. I was just telling you the truth.”

“Well, in that case, are you going to take me to this party and show me off, or are we going to stand on this staircase forever?” she questioned me.

I lifted a brow as I considered how to answer that question. Of course, I wanted to take her there and have a wonderful time together, but I could have been perfectly content standing on this staircase with her forever, too.

“Either would work for me, but since you went through all the trouble to get yourself dolled up, I think I’ll take you to the party. I reserve the right to bring you back to this staircase if the party turns out to be a dud, though.”

She started laughing again, her eyes shining. “It’s a deal.”

With that, I took her by the hand and led her down the stairs and toward the ballroom. I didn’t let go of her hand as we entered the room, and I continued to hold it in mine as we mingled with so many of our coworkers. I didn’t know what she thought about me making that move, but I couldn’t bring myself to let go of her.