“The bane of my existence is downstairs after intentionally hurting my friends and spitting lies about the woman I love, and you want me to belogical?”
I choke on a breath and drop his hand, feeling dizzy. He just said…
Derek immediately loses his ferocity and spins around. “I didn’t mean that.”
He didn’t? The room sways.
Cursing, he pulls his eyebrows low. “That’s a lie. I think I did mean it.”
He’s not helping, and I can barely make a sound as I strangle out, “You think?”
Groaning, Derek looks at Hunter as if hoping for backup, but Hunter is glancing between us, his mouth agape. Meeting my gaze again, Derek looks slightly sick, and I almost wish he was the unfazed version of himself right now because at least then I could lie to myself and pretend he doesn’t see loving me as a mistake.
“I’ve only known you for a week,” he says, shaking his head. “That’s not enough time to know something like this, especially for me.”
I need to get a grip. This is fine, and I don’t need him to love me anyway. I’ve always been fine on my own. I definitely wasn’t mentally and emotionally preparing myself to dive back into a world I swore to never return to because that’s the only way I can see him after this weekend.This is fine.
I’m a terrible liar, apparently.
I take an unsteady step backward, and Derek’s gaze sharpens as he tracks the movement.
“I’ve only known you for a week,” he says again, “but I can’t convince my heart of that. I feel like I’ve known you for months, maybe even years. You came out of nowhere and fit so perfectly with me that it feels like you were always meant to be at my side. I’m sorry if that’s too much, but it’s the truth.”
My breath leaves my lungs in a sharp exhale that might have been a laugh if I was in any way capable of processing what he’s saying right now. I knew he liked me. That he was attracted to me. He even inadvertently called me his heart last night. But this is something so much bigger.
“Love,” I breathe, testing the word. It’s so far beyond anything I expected from him, but it fits the feeling in my own chest. “I thought it was just me.”
He runs a hand through his hair. “It sounds crazy, but I…” He stops when my words catch up to him. Words I didn’t mean to say but can’t regret because his whole bearing relaxes. “Wait, do you…”
I shrug, and I’m starting to understand why he fumbled through his explanation after his slipup. I know what I feel, but that doesn’t mean I know how to put it into words. I should try anyway. “I’ve never been in love before. I can’t say for sure if I know what it feels like.”
“You and me both,” he mutters, rubbing the back of his neck. “Donovan, I—”
“It’s my turn to babble,” I complain.
Derek’s lips twist up in a smile. “Sorry. Carry on.”
I can’t help but smile back at him. “I didn’t even want love, especially not from a cocky overachiever with more random skills than can be considered normal.”
“My declaration was a lot nicer,” he says, giving me a playful scowl.
Choosing to ignore him, I continue, “There’s a good chance it was impossible not to fall in love with you this week, Derek.”
His smile wavers. “Because I’m Derek Riley?”
“Because you’re kind,” I counter; he needs to know that his worth has nothing to do with his fame. “Because you’re curious. Because you protect women from narcissistic creeps and talk to homesick kids in Spanish and take the time to listen before making judgments. And I feel like I’m still just scratching the surface of the incredible man that you are.”
He only has to take a single step to cut the distance between us to nothing, and while I expect him to kiss me, he instead wraps me up in an embrace so strong that I feel invincible. Nothing can touch me.
Except maybe Janie’s timid voice saying, “She wants to know what room you’re in. What should I tell her?”
I wait for Derek to tense up again and jump right back into the rage that led to this little dual confession of ours, but he simply releases me and stands up straight, a look of concentration on his face as he tucks my hair behind my ear with gentle fingers.
“I can send her packing,” Hunter offers. Heat blossoms on my face as I realize how close he’s standing to us, which means he likely heard every hushed word we exchanged a second ago.
“Nah. Janie, give her the number.” Derek’s lips twitch, and he gives me a conspiratorial look that makes me nervous. “What do you think about the idea of jumping back into acting?”
My snort of laughter breaks out of me without permission, mostly because he’s not referring to some future project. “What?”
