“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Jodi said, giving him the out that he didn’t deserve.
“Yes, there is,” Danny said, not willing to take the easy way out of this one. “I overreacted and acted like an asshole. You never agreed to marry me, but I’ve been acting like it’s a done deal and that’s not fair to you.”
“Thank you,” Jodi murmured with a small nod and a wince when Marybeth reached down, grabbed hold of Darrin’s nipple through his shirt and twisted.
“Mother fucker!” Darrin roared as Danny bit back a yawn.
“You want to tell me why you don’t want to marry me?” he asked, praying like hell that it wasn’t because she wasn’t in love with him because honestly, he wasn’t sure if he could handle that kind of a blow right now.
Not after hearing what his father just said.
He hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but after his mother made a big deal out of him beating the shit out of her baby because he could end up paralyzing himself, he’d realized that Jodi left. Afraid that he’d scared her off, he went after her only to find her talking to his father…about the asshole.
Or rather, he heard his father talking to her about the asshole.
He still couldn’t believe just how badly that piece of shit had fucked her over. What kind of a man does that to a woman? Not only does he dump her, but he also leaves her destitute and responsible for cleaning up his mess? There was no doubt in his mind that if he’d been home when he’d found out the extent of just how badly that piece of shit had fucked her over that he would probably at this very moment be getting arrested for killing the bastard.
All those times that he watched her deny herself something that she wanted, watched her settle for less and it was all because of that fucking loser. When he’d realized just how just how badly the piece of shit treated her, he’d been pissed off on her behalf, angry that she’d been with a man who hadn’t appreciated her, but this…
This was too fucking much.
And she’d been willing to marry this fucking asshole?
That’s the part that he really didn’t understand. The guy had been a fucking loser in every way possible. Now, he knew that it was actually so much worse. According to his father, the guy was a piece of shit who thought it was okay to steal from women and ruin their lives just before he dumped their asses and his Tinkerbelle had dated that.
Not only that, but she’d been willing to marry that fucking bastard, but not him…
That was the part that he couldn’t understand.
It was also the part that made him feel like shit.
He was supposed to be the one for her, the one that took care of her, made her happy, loved her, and…
Oh, fuck.
He loved her.
He fucking loved her.
“Shit,” Danny said, dropping her hand so that he could rub his hands roughly down his face, needing a moment to come to terms with this.
“What’s wrong?” Jodi asked, sounding concerned.
“Nothing,” he said with a small shake of his head, not particularly happy with this revelation.
He didn’t like this, not one fucking bit.
She was supposed to fall in love with him, not the other way around. This was his game plan! She was supposed to come to need him, want him, and ultimately love him so that he could marry her and have what his father, uncles, and cousins had. He wasn’t supposed to fall in love with a small woman who not only didn’t love him but also didn’t want to marry him.
“Tell me why you won’t marry me,” Danny said, taking a step back, needing the space to clear his head.
“It has nothing to do with you. I’m just not interested in marriage,” Jodi explained with a wobbly smile that caught his attention.
“You don’t want to get married?” he asked casually, waiting for her answer and the confirmation that he needed as he quickly came up with a brand-new game plan, one that would end with him getting exactly what he wanted.
It was risky and something that he’d told himself that he shouldn’t do, but the stubborn woman standing in front of him, searching for the right way to tell him that she wasn’t interested in marrying him, really wasn’t leaving him with much of a choice, now was she? Then again, he really shouldn’t be shocked. The woman didn’t seem to know what was good for her.
“No, I’m sorry. I’m just not interested in getting married,” Jodi said softly as if that would somehow make it easier for him to accept.
