Josie

"I'm sorry, but no. Thank you for the offer, though."

My cheeks flamed bright red as the gentlemen who had just asked to court me stepped back, apologetic eyes expressing his embarrassment.

"Please forgive me, Miss Woodwork."

I immediately felt bad for him, since he'd obviously put himself out there. I laid a reassuring hand on his arm and gave him what I hoped was a kind smile.

"There's nothing to forgive, Mr. Langley. My heart simply belongs to someone else."

There. That was the first time I'd told anyone about my feelings for Kaden, even if I hadn't mentioned his name. A weight was still lifted off my shoulders having bared my secret. Mr. Langley's eyes filled with understanding.

"I should have known. Anyone as beautiful as you is bound to be taken. He's a lucky man."

A blush tinted my cheeks at his words. Suddenly, I wanted to see Kaden. I wanted to dance with him and pretend for a second that he could possibly feel as strongly for me as I do for him. I turned my attention back to Mr. Langley.

"Thank you, sir. If you'll excuse me?"

He gave my hand a soft kiss and a slight bow, and I curtsied in response before turning around, my anxious eyes already searching for Kaden's beautiful golden hair. God, he was so handsome. He'd always been cute when we were growing up, but as we had aged his looks had only gotten better, and soon all the girls in the kingdom swooned at the sight of him-something that made him extremely uncomfortable, or so he'd told me.

I scanned the room desperately, but Kaden was nowhere to be found. My heart plummeted. Maybe he'd found a girl to sneak away with. I tried to quell the strange feelings surfacing in me, but it was hard when my imagination was so taunting. I was so consumed with jealousy and sadness that I barely perceived the weight of a hand on my shoulder until Eadlyn said my name. I spun around to meet the queen's concerned eyes. She took one look at my face and read me like an open book; her eyes softened and she gave me a soft smile.

"Josie, don't worry. He saw you with that gentleman and left the room a little while ago, but he was alone."

I didn't realize how much it meant to me to hear those words until I'd heard them from her mouth, and almost immediately I felt the soft bubbling of hope. Elated, I gave Eadlyn a quick kiss on the cheek and dashed out of the ballroom as fast as I could while still being ladylike. The hallways were empty save for the stationed guards, and I looked around desperately for a sign of Kaden, but found nothing. I walked further away from the bustling room full of dignitaries and royals and hopefully closer to Kaden.

"Kaden!" I called out in a loud whisper, wincing as my voice echoed off the walls. Nothing. I called his name again, a little louder this time, and I heard the sound of footsteps. I turned down the hall to my right, and there was Kaden. I breathed a sigh of relief that he was indeed alone. I took a closer look at him and my heart started racing like a hummingbird. He was just so handsome. His hair was tousled, no longer artfully styled like it had been earlier in the evening, and his suit coat was lying on the floor, something that would make our tailor faint. He leaned against the wall as if in contemplation, but when he heard me approaching, he looked up. I thought I saw a flash of hurt on his face before it closed up tighter than the castle gates. I walked towards him slowly, and he said nothing. I couldn't restrain the sting of anger that welled up in me.

"Kaden, I've been looking everywhere for you."

I knew my voice sounded accusatory, but I was mad- he wouldn't even look me in the eyes. He kept his eyes trained on the floor, but mumbled,

"You seemed to be otherwise occupied."

Okay, now the anger was a full force flame, and I was fighting to control it. I stomped over to him with a huff.

"What is your problem?" I demanded.

His eyes finally met mine, and I was shocked at what I saw. He looked upset, hurt. But the emotion that was most prominent was...jealousy. My heart did a little flip of happiness, but the anger was still the governing force of my mouth.

" Is that what this was all about? Me and Mr. Langley?"

Kaden stood up against the wall and avoided my eyes, but his silence was enough of an answer for me.

"Jesus, Kaden, nothing happened! He asked to court me-"

Kaden cut me off, his voice louder and angrier than before.

"How wonderful for you, Josie."

His voice was teeming with sarcasm, and it only served to bolster my fury.

What I did next I'm not too proud of. Let's just say there was more irrational thinking going on than rational. My shoe flew past him, smacking into the wall an inch from his face. He looked at the wall, and then at me, stunned into silence.

"I said no, Kaden!" I was yelling now, fed up with his attitude.

Kaden's lips tightened into a thin line and he started walking away from me, down the hall, but he still spoke.

"I can't imagine why. He's quite a catch."

Really? Oh, this time it wouldn't be my shoe that would almost hit him, and this time I wouldn't miss.

I almost screamed in anger and frustration and...I don't know what the other emotion was, but it was feeding a little ball of pressure low in my belly that wasn't unpleasant. With every emotion rolling through my body, there was no filter on what came out of my mouth.

"Because I'm in love with you, you idiot!" I yelled.

As soon as the sentence came out of my mouth, we both froze. I clapped a hand over my mouth, but it was too late. He'd heard me. I couldn't take the words back, and to be honest, I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

He turned around slowly and I swear you could've heard a pin drop, it was so quiet.

"What?" He asked quietly, and his voice seemed a little deeper than usual.

I swallowed my fears and trepidations and fixed my slightly wavering eyes on him.

"I-I said I'm in love with you. I love you, Kaden."

He said nothing, did nothing, except stare at me. He was quiet for so long that I became sure he didn't feel the same way. My voice was shaky when I spoke.

"I'm sorry, I-"

My voice cut off abruptly as Kaden moved suddenly, powerfully striding towards me. In mere seconds he'd backed me against the wall.

"I've been in love with you since I was 14." He rasped huskily.

Before I could think, breathe, he kissed me.

It was hot and heavy and everything I'd ever dreamed it would be. His hard body pressed my softer, silk-covered one to the wall and it was all I could do not to fall. He was all muscle and strength as his grasped my waist like I weighed twenty pounds. His lips moved against mine slowly, teasingly, and I gasped into his mouth. He took the opportunity to slip his tongue between my lips and holy hell, it was everything. The first touch of our tongues was like heaven and I let out a soft moan. I would have been embarrassed but he seemed to like it because he groaned against my mouth, and it was the sexiest sound I'd ever heard. His tongue moved with mine in a slow dance and he flicked it over the roof of my mouth, eliciting another moan from me. I didn't know where he learned to kiss like that and I didn't care; all I cared about was his lips and his body and him. His hands moved like fire over my torso, exploring my shoulders and back and waist, but never nearing my breasts or lower than my hips. I couldn't help but be disappointed. My hands were busy with their own exploration-they trailed over his powerful shoulders and arms and eventually tangled in his hair. He liked that, and he bit down on my bottom lip softly in retaliation, which had my grip tightening and me gasping. We were too drunk on each other to notice the footsteps approaching.

"Josie, are you-oh!"

And just like that, the spell was broken. He broke the kiss and turned his body so that it shielded mine from the intruder, and my heart swelled with love while my face heated up in embarrassment.

I peeked over his shoulder at the person who had interrupted us, and my face flamed even more when I recognized the queen Eadlyn, who just so happened to be his sister. I buried my face in his shoulder so I wouldn't have to face her, and he ran a soothing hand up and down my back.

"I-I'm sorry, I-Josie, I heard you yelling and I wanted to make sure you were okay…" She trailed off feebly.

"Don't worry about it, Eady, we're fine." Kaden practically snapped, and I could feel the tension rolling off him. I didn't hear Eadlyn move, and I could feel Kaden's frustration growing, so I swallowed my humiliation and met her eyes over his shoulder.

"I'm fine. Thank you for checking, Eadlyn."

She gave me a grin, one that showed me that she was neither embarrassed at interrupting us or disappointed in what she saw.

"Of course. I'm going to go back to the party now. And don't worry, I won't say a word." She gave me a wink before disappearing around the corner.

As soon as we were alone, I felt some of the tension leave Kaden, and he pulled me into him tightly. I snuggled closer, wrapping my arms around him and burying my head in his neck. He smelled so good, like warm bread and cinnamon.

"That was the most embarrassing moment of my entire life." He grumbled.

I leaned back to look at him with a soft smile.

"Well, what happened before it was the best moment of my life."

His eyes softened and he gave me a warm smile and a squeeze.

"Me too, Jose."

I bit my lip, unable to keep myself from asking him,

"Did you mean what you said? About loving me since you were fourteen?"

Kaden cupped my face in his hands; his eyes shone with so much love I thought I would cry.

"I meant every word."

I kissed him then, much more softly than before, and he hummed his appreciation into my mouth. My body ached to continue what we'd started before we were interrupted, but I knew we couldn't.

"Did you mean what you said?" As the words came out of his mouth, I noticed the hint of insecurity in his gaze and it was my turn to cup his face.

"I meant every word." I whispered, smiling at him when his face lit up.

He was the one to kiss me this time.