“Come eat,” he told me, standing up to pull out a chair. “I’ll grab you a plate.”
And just like that with his sweet gesture…
Old feelings: Three. Hurt feelings: One.
That game of tug-of-war I’d been playing with myself, was about to come to an end.
I was still holding on, trying to keep my heart safe, but right then I was tempted to let go and just tumble his way.
Chapter Ten
BRONSON
They were rightwhere they needed to be.
Lake and Stormi were settled into the condo just down the hall from me. But it still felt like my girls were too far away.
How in just a couple of days it felt like they were mine may seem crazy, but I wasn’t going to deny how damn good it sounded when I said it.
And so right.
Chapter Eleven
LAKE
We’d finally settledin for the night.
Standing in front of the mirror, I swiped a circle on it with my palm to clear the steam so I could look at myself. The shower was soothing after the long day we had, but tired eyes still stared back at me.
The last couple of days had taken their toll.
It had been an emotional rollercoaster being around Bronson again. Add in the fact that it seemed I was on the receiving end of a very unbalanced individual's unwanted attention and I felt like I was being challenged like never before.
“You are capable of getting through this,” I told the woman staring back at me.
I had been taking care of myself for a long time, my daughter too, but whatever was going on seemed too big for me alone. A rotten feeling sat in my gut and unease settled around me the second I felt as if someone had invaded our sanctuary—ourhome.I’d known someone had been lurking in the area and had mentioned it to Ruby at the hospital. Before I knew it Bronson was involved, along with the men ofNo Surrender.
It was for the best though.
Not only was I scared but I had my daughter to consider and I’d do anything to keep her safe. What seemed odd was that Bronson also wanted nothing more than to protect us both. How did I trust his intentions? Not that he would mean to hurt us but getting involved and then him walking away again would do just that. For Stormiandme.
My mind drifted back to my conversation with Bronson right before he’d left for the evening. We stood at the door and he said, “If you need anything, call or text me and I’ll come running.”
Before I could stop myself, those crazy emotions I mentioned took over and out tumbled, ”You never came when I needed you the most before. You just left. So why would it be different now?”
A tortured look contorted his face, but I couldn’t just wash away all the wounds he’d inflicted when he’d run away from me. Damned if I didn’t want to forgive him though. I just didn’t know how to do that completely while making sure I wasn’t hurt again in the process.
Bronson blew out a breath and schooled the emotions running wild across his face and stepped into my personal space. I looked down at the ground, unable to meet his eyes and worked to keep any tears at bay.
Why was it so hard?
When his finger touched under my chin to raise my head so my eyes could meet his, a shiver coursed through me and my body physically trembled at such a simple feel of his skin on mine.
“I promise, sweetheart. I will never walk away again.” His eyes bored into mine, an apology dancing in their depths, begging for forgiveness. “Repairing our friendship is first on my list and I won't stop until I do it.”
His hand moved and he brushed his knuckles down my face softly. “I’m going to hold you now so if you don’t want that you need to tell me.”
My body moved closer, craving what it had missed for so long. Bronson had always held me close, whether it was to hug me goodbye or hold me when I needed comfort. And I needed that right then.
