“No! But… but I didn’t know. I dropped a bombshell on you and I had no idea how you would react, and then you just left. I was so scared and my mind was running and running. I was scared of that, I was scared you’d be so angry that you would sue for custody, I was just…” She lifts a trembling hand to her mouth. “You must think I’m awful.”
“No,” I say as I move around the coffee table toward her. “Not at all. You’ve been protecting Nick. You’ve always been protecting Nick. I can’t ever fault you for that.”
“But I thought all those horrible things about you. My mind just kept running and running.”
Once I’m close enough, I gently reach for her hand against her chest and take it. “Given everything that’s happened, I can’t fault you for that being your default. But I’m right here, Calliope. I’m not going anywhere unless you ask me to, and even then, I’ll only be a phone call away.”
“No wife this time?” she jokes weakly, sniffling.
“No wife this time. But there is this woman I like so I can’t promise thatno wifewill stay permanent.”
“Oh, really?” Her eyes flood with fat tears that cling to the bottom of her lashes, and my chest throbs with the urge to stroke them away.
“Really, really.”
“I can’t… I can’t believe you whipped up a company out of thin air just so we could be together.”
“What can I say? I’m a dedicated man.”
“And you mean it?” She sniffles and looks up at me with shimmering eyes. “I’m not losing my job?”
“I mean it. I meant it yesterday when I said I was promoting you. It was the only info I could give.”
“I don’t know what to say,” she replies, her voice dropping to a whisper. “It’s insane to think about.”
“Say yes,” I encourage, sliding my fingers between hers. “I’m right here.”
“You said you love me.” Her brows knit together as if she’s trying to fight her tears.
“I… I do. I’ve never felt like this before about anyone, and it took me a second to realize what it was I was feeling but I… I do. I truly do. You make me laugh. You make me feel seen. You make me… you make me want to create brand-new companies just so we can be together.” I laugh softly. “It’s my truth.”
“Oh my God.” Calliope closes her eyes and the tears pour down her cheeks, so I cradle her face and wipe them away with my thumbs.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to make you cry.”
“S’good tears,” she whispers, opening her eyes again. “I can’t believe you’ve done all this for me.”
“All you need to do is sign if you want the job. Whatever you want to do. I just want to be with you.”
Calliope suddenly throws her arms around my shoulders and pulls me in, crashing her damp, tear-kissed lips into mine. Keeping one hand cradling her face, my other drops to her waist and I draw her in.
“I do,” she whispers against my lips. “I love my job. I want it. And I’ll sign because I love you too. I do. I think I did from the moment I saw you again.”
39
CALLIOPE
Valentine’s Day dawns with bright sun, a warm blue sky reminiscent of the middle of June, and a hundred red roses delivered by a pink van at nine in the morning. I stand at the front door, holding a cup of coffee and watching the delivery men grab the last baskets of roses from the back of their van.
“What the hell?” Mom comes down the stairs, rubbing one eye, and immediately stops dead. “Calliope, what the hell have you done?”
“Nothing, Mom,” I sigh softly. “These are a gift.”
“From who?”
Lifting the cup to my lips, I sip slowly as the couriers move past me with a polite smile. “Elijah. For Valentine’s.”
“That’s ridiculous,” she mutters. “I can’t believe you’re thinking of getting back with him.”
