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wouldn’t tell him she’d put it away after a year. “It was the best gift I’d ever received. I was so surprised when it arrived.”
    “I promised I’d send you something from Jamaica.”
    “No. You were supposed to bring me something.”
    “I couldn’t,” he said simply. And then, “Alexandra, there’s something I must tell you.”
    Her breath caught in her throat. “Yes?” she all but croaked.
    “I listened to you, and I’ve thought about you, all the time. More often than even I realized,” he added with a fleeting smile. “I wanted you to know that.”
    Had he just said those words, the very ones she’d always daydreamed about hearing from his lips? I’ve thought about you all the time. Her heart seemed to swell in her chest. She was so excited, she barely heard what he said next.
    “But I also need for you to know—”
    “I always noticed you, too,” she burst out.
    He winced, as though her admission had hurt him. “I’m almost sorry to hear that, sweetheart. There are circumstances…”
    Heavens above, he’d called her sweetheart !
    He seemed to be gathering himself. She waited. And waited. She’d never realized she could hold her breath so long.
    “We’re not meant to be together,” he said at last. “Your brother would never—”
    “This isn’t my brother’s choice.” Now that she knew he had noticed her, she wouldn’t let Griffin or Lord Shelton keep her from Tris. The Prince himself couldn’t stand in her way! “I shall have a talk with him.”
    He shook his head mournfully. “Even in the extremely unlikely event that Griffin might agree, I cannot allow—”
    “Hush, Tris.” She turned her hand over beneath his and gripped his fingers, hard. “You don’t mean it.” She moved even closer, so close she had to tilt her head back to search his eyes, looking for understanding and failing to find it. Then, without thinking, she reached up and swept that single renegade lock off his forehead.
    All at once, something changed in that molten gray gaze, and he stepped closer, his scent overwhelming her—that clean-Tris scent. “Alexandra,” he murmured, his fingertips grazing her cheek.
    His warmth enveloped her, warding off the chill night air. He cupped her face in his hand and pressed closer, all but pinning her against the ancient stone wall. Closer, closer, until she could feel his breath teasing her lips.
    She wondered fleetingly if she would faint from lack of air. Then his lips touched hers, and all thought fled for a long, glorious moment.
    When he released her, she stood frozen in utter, giddy disbelief, relying on the wall for support.
    Her first kiss, it had been, and it had felt wonderful. Soon, she thought dizzily, his surprising, thrilling words still swirling about in her head… I’ve thought about you all the time …soon, they would kiss again. Soon, he would be her husband.
    She gave him a trembly smile. “That was nice.”
    “No.” He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair raggedly. “That was wrong of me.”
    “Well, perhaps,” she said, confused. She drew a shaky breath and let it out. “But such a small impropriety cannot really matter so long as we…”
    “So long as we what?”
    “So long as we…”
    He hadn’t proposed, and she couldn’t bring herself to do it for him. But as she watched and waited, she saw understanding dawn in his eyes. And then she saw his jaw set as he stepped farther back. “A kiss doesn’t equal a marriage proposal, Alexandra.”
    His voice shouldn’t sound so cold and resolute. Her giddiness seemed to pop like a soap bubble. “But I thought—”
    “I’m sorry,” he interrupted, and he did indeed look sorry. “I cannot marry you. There are circumstances…blast it, I knew I needed to think about how to explain this.” She watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed hard. “Please accept my sincere apologies. What I just did was dishonorable, and I can only assure you it won’t happen again.