Noah #2
I didn’t respond as I pulled out the chair next to Emery. To everyone else, sitting next to Emery made sense. I was her fiancé. I should sit next to her while we’re tasting wedding cakes. I wasn’t a wedding expert, but even I knew it would seem strange for me to sit far away from my bride-to-be.
Abigail and Emery talked about their plans for the rest of the day while we waited for Hudson to come back.
I kept my gaze focused on the table in front of me with my elbows resting on the arms of the chair and my fingers steepled in front of me.
Timothy convinced his mom to let him play games on her phone, and the soundtrack from his game filled the air.
Finally, the door opened and a woman, whom I could only assume was Hudson’s assistant Natalie, came walking in with a few waters and a bottle of hand sanitizer.
Hudson was trailing behind her, carrying a platter loaded with numerous slices of cake.
He set it down in front of Emery and me and then proceeded to walk us through each slice.
There was vanilla bean with raspberry compote. Chocolate cake with salted caramel filling. Lemon cake with blueberry curd. Almond cake with amaretto cream and dark cherry preserves. The last one was red velvet cake with a whipped cream cheese filling.
They all looked amazing, and my mouth watered while I studied them.
“Enjoy. I’ll come back to see which one you guys choose,” Hudson said before he headed back out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
My attention returned to the cake. I wasn’t sure where to start, so I waited for Emery to pick.
“They all look so good,” Emery said, her voice breathy. She hesitated. “Maybe start with the lemon and blueberry?” she asked.
I glanced over to see her studying me. I nodded. “Whatever you want,” I said.
She moved to grab a spoon.
“Wait,” Abigail said.
Emery paused, her hand hovering over the spoon as she turned her attention to Abigail.
“Why don’t you guys feed each other, like it’s the reception?” Her expression was earnest as she smiled. “You know, get a little practice in.”
I didn’t try to hide my frown. Why was she asking us to do that? I peeked over at Emery to see that she seemed hesitant, too. But then, slowly, she glanced back at me.
“I guess we could do that.”
I raised my eyebrows. “If that’s what you want,” I said. If feeding me cake like we’d just gotten married would make her happy, I would push aside my feelings and oblige.
“Perfect,” Abigail said as she clapped her hands and motioned toward the cake.
Emery left the spoon and slowly moved her hand to hover over the lemon and blueberry cake. She hesitated before she broke off a piece. Her gaze drifted to meet mine as she lifted the bite to my mouth.
“Here you go,” she said softly.
I parted my lips and let her slip the piece in. Her fingers brushed my lips, sending shockwaves of electricity through my body. I forced my mind to focus on chewing so I didn’t choke as I locked my gaze with Emery’s. She seemed anxious for my response.
“Mmm,” I said after I swallowed. “That’s delicious.” I wasn’t a fruity-dessert guy, but it wasn’t terrible. I preferred chocolate. But if this flavor was what Emery wanted for our wedding cake, I was game.
Her eyebrows went up. “Really?” she asked.
I nodded before reaching over and grabbing one of the water bottles Hudson’s assistant had brought in. “It’s really good,” I said after I washed down the rest of the bite.
“I want to try some,” she said, glancing down at the cake and then back up to me.
It was my turn to feed her. I squirted some sanitizer on my hand and rubbed it into my skin. Once it was dry, I reached out and broke off a section of cake. With it grasped between my thumb and fingers, I turned to face her.
She’d been watching me, her gaze focused on me as I brought the cake up.
“Ready?” I asked.
She nodded.
My attention fell to her mouth, and the memory of kissing her at the charity gala slammed into my mind.
The feeling of her lips, her satin dress, and her body pressed against mine was as poignant as the moment it happened.
The whole world around me seemed to fade away, and all that existed was her and I.
Slowly, she parted her lips. It was akin to torture, how soft and pink they were. I doubted another set of such perfect lips had ever existed.
“I’m ready,” she whispered.
Realizing that I was just sitting in front of her, staring at her mouth, I blinked and nodded. “Of course.”
She opened her lips once more and allowed me to feed her the cake.
I made sure that she only got the amount she wanted.
Her lips brushed my fingertips as she closed them, and once again electricity rippled across my skin.
Her gaze intensified as her eyelids dropped, and she was studying me through her lashes like she felt something too.
In that moment, I was grateful Abigail had suggested we practice this before the wedding. Feeding her cake was way too intimate. And my reaction proved that I needed to desensitize myself before we had to perform the mandatory cake feeding in front of our wedding guests.
I knew I could “fake” feelings for her—especially since a lot of them were starting to become very real.
The crowd wouldn’t question that we were in love.
But I needed this reminder that all of this—the cake, the flowers, the dress—was performative.
That this was to convince the board that we were married for real.
That was all.
I scolded myself for having a reaction to her touch. I was a weak man who needed to get his head on straight.
“Well, you guys are boring,” Abigail said, her words cutting through the tension between me and Emery.
I pulled back, my hand still lingering in the air before I reached out and grabbed one of the napkins off the table.
“I wanted to see some cake smashing,” she said as she waved her hand in our direction.
That got Timothy’s attention, and for the first time since we’d sat down, he peeked out from behind his screen. He managed to sneak the bottom layer of the chocolate cake before Emery tsked him and waved his hand away.
Emery turned back to Abigail and gave her a sheepish smile. “Sorry about that. I can do it with the next one?”
Abigail smiled. “Naw. I think you guys got some good practice in. Plus, I want to try some, too.”
We each grabbed a spoon and started taking bites.
Timothy set Emery’s phone down on the table so he could partake as well.
Emery and Abigail chatted about each slice, noting the things they liked and the things they didn’t like with each flavor.
None of them were bad enough for us to leave the piece unfinished.
Soon the platter was empty and only crumbs remained.
“Those were amazing,” Abigail said as she set down her spoon and stretched back against her chair.
I nodded as I set my spoon down on the platter. “They were.”
Emery’s gaze was on me. “Which one did you like?”
I glanced over at her for a moment and then shrugged. “I’m okay with anything, really.” The chocolate and salted caramel was my favorite, but Emery had expressed some dissatisfaction with the richness of the cake. I wasn’t going to tell her that I liked it in case that swayed her decision.
This was her wedding. She should get the cake she wanted.
“Nope. You have to tell us.” Abigail leaned forward once more, her gaze locked on mine.
I glanced at Emery and then back to Abigail. “It doesn’t matter. I want whatever Emery wants.”