First Kiss Last by Sara Miller (latest books to read .txt) 📕

Bride is my new favorite. Have you seen it? Do you like it? Is it a good choice?” He finally stopped for a breath and looked expectantly between the two adults.

Leah looked at Cade. Cade looked at Leah and raised one eyebrow. He smiled. Leah turned her attention back to Liam.

“I think it sounds perfect! I haven’t seen that movie in ages and it’s one of my favorites too.”

Liam gave another whoop, similar to the one she heard earlier. This time she was able to see it was punctuated with a raised fist in the air. She laughed in delight at his unrestrained happiness. She could lose her heart to this kid.

“Dad,” his tone turned suddenly serious. “I think we need snacks.”

Cade took a deep breath and looked as if he might finally put his foot down. Before he could get a word out, a loud grumble erupted from Leah’s stomach. She released Cade’s hand and pressed both hands to her belly, willing the sound to end. When it did, she looked up embarrassed.

“Tell you what, you go queue up the movie and we’ll go grab some grub.”

There was another whoop as Liam scampered down and across the room to fetch the movie.

Cade took her hand again and they crossed the great room. On the far right side, Leah saw it opened into a dining area with a kitchen tucked in the right corner. They bypassed the large farm table and the island that separated the two spaces. When they were just out of sight of the living room, he hugged her close and gave her another quick kiss.

“Told you Liam would love you,” Cade gloated. “Now let’s find you food before your stomach gets so loud we can’t hear the movie,” he teased.

“Ha-ha.” She tried to look offended but it didn’t work. He laughed, kissed her again and turned to the cupboards.

“Popcorn?”

She did not have to answer. Again, her stomach spoke for her.

“Okay, maybe something more substantial.” He opened the fridge and gestured at the kitchen in general. “Make yourself at home. What sounds good?”

Leah plucked an apple out of a wicker basket of fruit on the counter. “Popcorn for sure. And . . . do you have any cheese? I know it might sound weird but popcorn, apple slices, and cheese are one of my favorite snack combos and I don’t have it very often,” She shifted her attention to the apple, twisting the apple stem in an old childhood alphabet game to reveal the name of her true love. A, B, C—the stem broke off and she smiled.

Cade dug through the fridge and pulled out a package of mozzarella string cheese and a partial block of cheddar. He held them out for her approval.

“Mmm . . . cheddar.” She grabbed it from him.

He showed her where the cutting board lived and what drawer held knives. As she rinsed off several apples and began to slice them, Cade poured juice for Liam and grabbed two beers for them. Leah made a face and he put one beer back.

“Tell me what you like and I’ll have it here. For next time.”

“Next time,” she repeated with a wistful smile. “Hmm . . . hard cider maybe?” She waited for him to judge her choice. She could hear the movie starting in the background and quickly switched to ready the cheese.

She felt Cade lean in behind her and press up close. “As you wish,” he whispered.

“Water okay for now?” he asked, tone back to normal.

She nodded and transferred the apples and cheese to the plate he’d handed her. It was white, trimmed with green leaves and tiny yellow flowers. She felt a pang of jealousy over what feminine hand helped pick out that pattern. She immediately felt ridiculous and focused on finishing her task.

Perfect timing. The microwave beeped just as the popping slowed and she pulled it out, shaking it vigorously.

“Add real popcorn to that list too. I can make it on the stove, it’s so much better.”

This time Cade only nodded. He held out a small plastic bowl and filled it. “For Liam, we can share the plate and bag. Sound good?”

“Mmmm,” Leah couldn’t reply in words. She had snagged a piece of apple and was chomping away. She slipped a couple apple wedges and cheese slices along the inner edge of Liam’s green bowl.

Between the two of them, they somehow managed to get the drinks and the snacks to the living room. Liam grabbed his bowl and headed for the beanbag chair, already engrossed in the movie. Cade and Leah settled in on the couch side-by-side.

“Quick, eat! Before you starve away to nothing!” Cade teased and fed her some popcorn. As his fingers brushed her lips, she had more than one kind of hunger. She pushed him away playfully.

“Hardly! I could go quite a while before I starve.” She patted at her hip indicating she had plenty of padding.

Cade’s forehead wrinkled and the playful smile disappeared. “I think your body is perfect. Please don’t put yourself down. Not around me. Especially not with me. Okay?”

She’d just put more food in her mouth so it took her a moment to reply. He seemed so serious and genuine. It was hard to process. She wanted to believe him. To comply. To feel accepted and even cherished just as she was.

“I’ll try.” After a lifetime of body image issues, it was the best she could offer. Although, if he kept this up, she wondered if he could actually convince her. She offered him a smile and he stole the piece of apple she was about to eat.

“Hey, this is GOOD!” Liam announced. “I’ve never had apples and cheese with popcorn before. Was this Miss Leah’s idea? I bet it was. She’s SMART! Can I have more?”

Cade quickly refilled the bowl and handed it down to him. “That’s it, bud. The rest is ours, okay?”

“Okay, but can we have it again some time?” He turned to Leah, not waiting for a response. “Because