No, that wasn't going to do all. I swallowed hard and sucked in a deep breath before closing in on him. I slid an arm around his waist, drawing him closer to me. “I don't want you apologizing unless you regret it. Don't tell me it was a mistake just because you think it's what I want to hear. Don’t assume I’m upset with you for doing what I’ve never had the balls to do.”
“One of these days, I'll learn how to control myself around you.”
As my hands slid up Owen’s back, I felt him relax against me. “I hope you don’t. You’ve always been the brave one, the strong one. It’s like you know what I’m too scared to take for myself and you give it to me. Don’t ever change that.”
Owen let out a shaky breath. He jerked his head to the side and we started walking down the sidewalk. It felt like we’d walked every street in town by the time we looped back to the B&B.
Tomorrow was going to suck, but the sleep deprivation would be worth it to feel like Owen was back in my life.
CHAPTERFOUR
TYLER
Someday,I'll learn to control myself around you.
Owen’s confession from the night before plagued me as I lay in bed, trying to work up the energy to move. He made me believe in dreams I'd long since given up on, and that was dangerous. The reality was, in less than seventy-two hours, Owen would go back to his life and I’d move on with mine.
My heart ached, feeling as if the wound that had healed over the past decade had been ripped open once again.
With my phone already blowing up, alerting me to the first of today's so-called crises, I swung my feet over the edge of the bed. It took me a minute to catalog the unfamiliar sounds and remember I wasn't at home. I was tempted to fall back onto the bed and pull the blankets over my head.
Michael handed me a cup of coffee as soon as I stepped into the destruction formerly known as his kitchen. If he so much as thought about interrogating me about my night out, I'd ask when he planned on addressing his own personal life. It was obvious from the way he doted on me every time I came over that he missed having someone to take care of, and parenting Henry didn't count.
“Did you have fun last night?” Michael asked as he whipped some eggs and poured them into a sizzling pan. Next, he moved on to slicing some fruit. I snatched a piece of bacon from the tray, then pulled a container of baby food out of the cupboard.
I spent enough time here to know what his morning routine looked like. Michael poured a small glass of juice and slid it across the counter to me before tossing me a bottle of pain relievers. Now that I had stopped to assess how I felt, yeah, it was probably a good idea to get ahead of the pain. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had more than a beer or two at a time, and I’d never been a fan of shots. Last night, I’d done both.
Okay, so maybe having someone doting on me wasn't a bad thing. “I did. I met up with an old friend who's in town for the weekend.”
I should've known that morsel couldn't hold up to small-town gossip. Michael pursed his lips as if he was physically exerting himself to keep from challenging me.
“Fu– Fudge, just spit it out. Do I even want to hear what's already going around?” I slipped two fingers through the handle of the mug, sipping as I pinched the bridge of my nose.
I turned to the highchair, making silly faces at Henry. The more he giggled, the harder I twisted my face. I’d never considered having kids of my own, but there was something comforting about listening to him babble in between bites of puréed glop.
“I know the juicy gossip travels fast around here, but it’s too early for the old men outside the cafe to get home and tell their wives. Give it time,” he joked. I scowled, not amused in the least. “If you want it to stay that way, maybe you should reconsider being so defensive.”
He handed me another container of baby food when Henry finished the first and started pounding on the highchair tray for more. The little dude was obviously going through a growth spurt. He nearly knocked the container out of my hands as he lunged forward. Apparently, I was taking too long for him.
Michael set down a plate in front of me. I smiled, grateful for the effort he’d put in. “You know, I can take care of Henry so you can eat. He’s not your responsibility.”
“Or here's a thought, you could take the help when it's offered and use this opportunity to remember what it's like to eat food while it's still hot,” I quipped. “Besides, I like spending time with Henry. He's not nosy like you are.”
“Again, let me remind you that I didn't say a word, other than asking if you had a good time.” He took a sip of his coffee. I swear, he moaned in delight as he shoveled scrambled eggs into his mouth.
Just as I thought, he'd been so busy taking care of his son that he hadn't been taking care of himself. That was definitely something we were going to address.
“Do you want to talk about it? Obviously if you're worried about someone talking about whatever the two of you got up to, there's something between you and this mystery man other than just friends. Is he an old friend or an ex?”
“Does it make me a bad person if I almost wish he was an ex?” I hadn't even realized I’d spoken the words aloud until I caught Michael staring at me.
Rather than answering that question, he made a waving motion with his hand for me to continue.
“Fine. No, he's not an ex. He was one of my best friends when we were kids but then his family moved away,” I explained. If Owen’s parents hadn’t been overgrown children themselves, maybe whatever we felt the first time we kissed could have grown into something more. Or maybe we would have crashed and burned and still be exactly where we were before yesterday.
“I see.”
“What exactly do you think you see?” I scooped a bite of food for Henry, then plucked a piece of fruit off my plate.
