“But what?”
I set down my spatula and turn to face him. “But I feel weird about it. Going to your family’s Thanksgiving when we’re…whatever this is.”
He moves closer, and suddenly the kitchen feels much smaller than it actually is. “What do you want this to be, Magnolia?”
The question hangs in the air between us, heavy with possibility.
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I’m still married, Levi. Legally, at least. And you’re…”
“I’m what?”
“You’re you.” I gesture helplessly, trying to put into words what this man means to me. “You’re this incredible guy who deserves someone without all my baggage. Someone who’s not a mess. Someone who can give you everything you deserve.”
His hands come up to frame my face, tilting my head back so I have to look at him. “You want to know what I think you are, Magnolia Grace?”
I nod, not trusting my voice.
“I think you’re brave. I think you’re one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. I think you’ve been through hell and you’re still standing, still fighting, still building what’s going to be a beautiful life out of the wreckage. I think you’re exactly what I want, baggage and all.”
Tears spill over, before I can stop them. “Levi?—”
“How about we go together?” he suggests. “To Thanksgiving. But we tell everyone we felt it was safer for me to pick you up with everything going on with Cody.”
It’s a good cover story, and everyone would believe it. Even Caleb knows how scared I am after he responded to the house. It lets us be together without having to define what we are to his family.
“Okay,” I agree. “Yeah, let’s do that.”
He drops a kiss on my forehead, and we get back to work. The rest of the day passes in a blur of hard work and lots of laughter. We steal glances and accidentally touch each other. It’s how I wanted Cody to share my business with me, but he refused to.
Levi Harrison is the epitome of a partner, and if he wanted to, he would.
Hours later, my stomach growls loudly in the almost silence of the room. “Oh my God,” I laugh, putting a hand to it. “I guess I’m hungry.”
Levi glances over to the microwave. “We’ve been at this for seven hours, Magnolia. Let’s take a break and eat.”
I’m going over all the orders we’ve accomplished and I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made. “I agree, let’s put this up. I can make dinner,” I offer.”
“The fuck you are, you’ve worked just as hard as me. Let’s order pizza.”
I take a shower, while he cleans up the kitchen, and when I come out, the pizza is already here. “That smells amazing.”
“Sure does,” he says as he turns to face me, a piece already hanging out of his mouth.
We collapse on the couch with the box between us. Levi turns on the TV, setting up the streaming channel for ER.
I’m halfway through my second slice when the episode takes a dark turn. Lucy and John Carter are in the hospital, and then suddenly there’s blood and chaos, and we’re both tense.
“Oh my God, Levi, can you believe this?” I ask, my mouth hanging open, pizza forgotten.
He reaches over, grabbing my hand. “I worry about this with you, Magnolia. There’s no telling what Cody can do when he’s upset.”
The sudden shift from the show to reality makes my stomach drop. I swallow roughly, because I’ve thought about it too. “I have to have faith that somewhere in there, is the man who said he loved me. Besides, I’ve had self defense classes, I can take care of myself.”
But even as I say the words, I’m not sure I believe them. Cody’s been getting more aggressive, more unpredictable. The way he looked at me outside Shelby’s office…
Levi pulls me into his side, and I let him. Let myself be held, let myself feel safe, even though I know it might be temporary.
“I’ve got you,” he murmurs against my hair. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
