Jason POV 😍
"Are you alright?"
Kate lifted her head from her hands and looked up at me. She shook her head as if to clear it. "Jason?" She whispered, her eyes wide. It surprised me how much I liked hearing her say my name.
She closed her eyes and then opened them again. I watched in fascination as a slow smile spread on her beautiful face.
"You're not real." She said solemnly, standing up on unsteady feet.
"Excuse me?" I wasn't expecting that.
"You're in my head." She jabbed a finger in my chest and then frowned. "But you feel real."
Her eyes had that glazed look people got when they were heavily intoxicated. The slight flush on her face backed up my guess. "How much have you had to drink?"
"Not enough." She grinned, a happy carefree grin that made me smile in return. Damn, she looked good.
She wobbled suddenly and I caught her around the waist trying to steady her. Big mistake. I realized the moment her body brushed against mine. It was as if a switch was flicked on. My body tightened with awareness instantly.
"Looks like you've had more than enough to drink." I said trying to ignore my body's reaction. "Let's get you outside to some fresh air."
I knew it was a bad idea being alone with her but it didn't stop me from leading her outside. The deck was deserted except for a few couples enjoying the cool breeze under the stars. I led Kate towards a lounger and made her sit on it. "I'll go get some water for you. Stay here. Don't move, okay?"
She stared at me, a frown on her face and for a moment I thought she had finally realized what was going on. But then a cheeky smile replaced the frown and she made a mock salute. "Yes, sir." She said through a fit of giggles.
Shaking my head in amusement, I headed to the outdoor bar on the other side of the deck. When I came back with a bottle of water, Kate was leaning over the railing looking out to the sea. My heart lurched wildly in fear and cursing under my breath, I pulled her back by the arm.
"Dammit, Kate. I told you not to move. You could have fallen over." The words came out sounding harsher than I had intended to and she looked at me startled.
"You sound just like Peter." She sighed with exaggerated exasperation then grabbed the water bottle and drank half of it in one breath.
When she finished, I took the bottle from her and screwed the cap back on. "Who is Peter?" I asked her curiously as I helped her sit back on the lounge chair.
"My fiancé'."
I stilled. "You're engaged?" My eyes travelled to her left hand. "You don't have a ring on."
"I took it off." She was idly playing with her finger for long seconds and I wondered if she had lost track of what she was saying.
"Why?" She gave me a blank look and I couldn't help smiling. "Why did you take your ring off?"
"Oh, that. I was afraid of losing it. Peter would yell at me if that happened."
"He sounds like a douche." I murmured dryly still recovering from the shock of finding out she was engaged.
"Hey, you're not real so you don't get to have an opinion." She jabbed a finger into my chest. "He loves me." She added as an afterthought.
"Good to know." I said trying not to smile.
She narrowed her eyes at me suspiciously, probably thinking I was mocking her. "And I love him."
This time I couldn't stop the smile. "Well, I should hope so since you're getting married to him."
Instead of saying anything, she just stared at me. I wondered what she was thinking. Again, I was struck by how enticing she looked. The way her hair was wild and dancing around her face was extremely distracting. Her cheeks were still flushed with the alcohol and the redness made her more appealing than she already was. The short black dress she was wearing emphasized her slender figure and long legs. Even as a teenager she was beautiful, but now as a woman, she looked absolutely breathtaking.
When she continued staring at me with that blank expression, I raised eyebrow.
