“Yeah. I was wrong.”
Her gaze flicks to the stacked cans by my trash. A muscle ticks in her jaw. “You know what would’ve been kinder? Walking in for coffee the next morning. Looking me in the eye.”
My pulse is back in my throat. She crosses her arms—not a barricade, more like holding herself together.
“Tell me the truth,” she says. “Did that night mean something to you or not?”
I nod without hesitation. “It absolutely did. I wanted to come back so badly I couldn’t think straight. I haven’t slept. I’ve been at the office to stop myself from walking through your door and asking you to let me in again.” I take another careful half step. “I also know I’ve got a history that makes people feel second to a job that eats me alive whenever it wants. I didn’t want to make you a casualty of that.”
“Then don’t.”
I huff out a breath that isn’t a laugh. “I don’t know how.”
“Then we figure it out together.” She uncrosses her arms. Her mouth softens, but her eyes stay steady. “I’m not a fling you regret, Owen.”
“I know. I panicked. You deserve someone who won’t disappoint you.”
“Owen.” Her voice carries a note of steel I haven’t heard before. “Look at me.”
I force myself to meet her gaze, her dark eyes intense with determination.
“Why do you think you’re going to disappoint me?” She pauses, letting the question settle between us. “When we made love, it was the best thing in the world.”
“I’m scared I’m going to hurt you and ruin everything.”
“Did you ruin it?”
I look up from my hands and find her watching me with an expression I can’t quite read, but she looks more sad now than angry.
“I don’t know. Did I?”
CHAPTER 8
VIVIAN
Instead of answering immediately, I stand and move around Owen’s desk. He watches me carefully as I close the distance between us. When I’m close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body, I stop.
“That depends.”
“On what?” His voice comes out hoarse.
“On whether you’re done running.” I reach out and place my hand over his where it rests on the desk, feeling the tremor in his fingers. “On whether you’re willing to trust me when I tell you that being scared is normal. Wanting to protect your partner from being hurt is normal. Communicating your fears is normal.”
He turns his hand palm up under mine, and the simple gesture breaks down some of the wall I’ve built up since that night. “I don’t want to run anymore. I want to be the man you deserve.”
“You alreadyare. You need to believe it.”
My phone buzzes in my pocket, insistent and annoying. I try to ignore it, focusing on this moment and the breakthrough we’re having.
But it won’t stop.
Frustration floods through me as I glance at the screen, seeing message after message flooding in. The bubble of intimacy we’ve created pops as reality intrudes.
“I have to go.” Frustration rolls through me. Owen and I are so close, but now I have to deal with my coffee shop and its future.
“Why?” Owen’s already reaching for his jacket, that protective instinct kicking in. “What happened?”
I look at him, seeing the concern in his eyes, and my heart clenches with both affection and dread.“Aurora Coffee moved up their deadline. I have until tomorrow to accept their offer, or they’re opening anyway, and I’m dead in the water.” My voice cracks. “Mika’s already getting calls from customers asking if we’re closing.”
