Page 131 of To Know Miss May

Passion burned in his heart, sliding through his very soul at her words.

“This be me final secret, August Moon. The secret I’ve kept with me longer than any other. The secret that I’ve loved ye for ten years, e’er since ye rescued those pages o’ the book for me.”

How blind August had been. How focused he’d been on himself and his own life. Yes, she had been far too young to pursue years ago, but then, had he known, surely he could have avoided all of this pain.

But then, without the pain of losing her, would he have ever known the joy of having her love?

Slowly, his eyes once more fell to her lips. This time, their kiss would be different. This time, it would not end in sorrow. He would not pull away to tell her all of his wrongdoings, and he would kiss her as she deserved, with all of the love he held for her.

This time, he would kiss her right.

* * *

Livvy’s heart stuck in her throat as August leaned closer to her, his brows low over his eyes, his lips parted as he drew in a ragged breath.

She knew she should pull away. She shouldn’t allow another kiss to occur between them, especially when…when she would still be leaving in the morning.

But as August’s eyes, dark and penetrating, focused and determined, fell again to her lips, she could no longer think properly.

If she was to leave the morning, if she was never to see this man again, she would forever regret not giving into her desires in that moment, giving in to her love and passion for the man.

So she would allow it. She would allow herself a single moment in in time where she wasn’t being dictated to by her father. Where she wasn’t being controlled, humiliated, spoken about.

Where she was, instead, loved and cherished.

No one else could make her feel so but August.

All other thoughts fled her mind as his hand slid across her jaw to rest near the back of her neck, his fingers pressing against her to urge her closer to him, softly, gently.

Livvy did as he requested, tipping her head back slightly, her hands sliding forward to rest at his waist.

Slowly, he leaned toward her, his warm breath on her lips a perfect contrast to the cold mist around them. Was it coincidental that she would kiss the man she loved in her very favorite weather?

In her heart, she knew it was not. In her heart, she knew Heaven wished for her to have this one moment of joy and made it all the more perfect for her.

August’s thumb propped beneath her chin, caressing her softly until her lips parted from his slight pressure.

The moment they did part, August closed the distance between them, and his lips pressed into hers. Years of waiting culminated into this moment, even more than their first kiss. For even then, she had felt August holding back, an invisible force keeping him from fully enjoying the kiss.

But this one. This one was different. For August was hers, if only for a moment. And it was a moment she would relish forever.

She lid her hands up his chest slowly, and his responding sigh deep in his throat stirred the desire within her to greater depths. Slowly, she moved her arms over his shoulders, standing on the tips of her toes to link her fingers at the back of his neck, pulling her body against his.

August responded in turn, moving his arms to wrap about her securely, his hands sliding from the small of her back to her hips, never straying past the point of propriety, which allowed her to more fully enjoy his affection.

For just as she said, she trusted August. With all of her heart, she trusted him. She knew if she stayed, she could combat any rumors that had already occurred and would no doubt occur. If she stayed, he would help her, fight her insecurities alongside her, encourage her to grow, love, and experience life better than she ever had before.

But if she stayed, she would always have the constant reminder, the constant discouragement, the constant darkness from her father. The thoughts would always be there.

I ain’t good enough for ’im.

’E don’t want me to be ’ere.

’E doesn’t need me, just as Mother didn’t need me.

How could she stay with August when each day with him that should be filled with light, would also be filled with darkness?

August broke apart from her for a moment, trailing kisses along her cheeks and brow before finding her lips once more, deepening their kiss with the love she knew he possessed for her.