She gives a watery little laugh. “I’m not telling you this because I want you to rescue me, Ian. It’s not fair of me to expect you to solve my problems.”
“Fuck fairness.” I lean over the console to bury my snout in her hair, sucking in deep breaths of her scent. “It solves my problems, too. You know I want you with me.”
She draws back a little so I have to let her go. “If it’s okay with you, I’m going to stay with Heidi and Nicole, at least at first. I think I need a little time to sort myself out. Figure out what I want and not just what someone else wants.” She sounds tentative. Maybe even fearful. I really don’t like that she’s scared of my reaction.
“Whatever you need, I’ll be there.”
A smile tugs at the corner of her mouth. “Why did I know that you were going to say that?”
I pick up her hand, bringing it to my mouth so I can kiss her knuckles before I answer her rhetorical question. “Because you know my heart.”
She blushes, my sweet little peach. “I’m starting to.”
“You can learn more about it if you let me take you out to dinner after work tonight.” I’m begging. I don’t even care. I just want to be near her.
We’re so close to being together now, something I’ve barely hoped for. Barely dreamed of. But she’s said it out loud: she’s going to divorce her husband. That means there will be room in her life for more than just the pups. There will be room for me, too.
“I need some time to think,” she says, shooting me down with her sweet, hesitant voice. My heart, which has been floating higher and higher over the course of our conversation, sinks a little. “I have to figure out my approach.”
It’s still very possible that she won’t leave her husband. Maybe she’ll lose courage, or maybe he’ll blow up if she pushes too hard, too fast. Things are still delicate, and I need to let her set the pace.
“I understand,” I say, nodding. “It’s okay. Take all the time you need. We’ve got the rest of our lives.”
Chapter 28
Julia
“Idon’t needthatmuch time,” I tease, sensing his disappointment. “We could have breakfast tomorrow, maybe? There’s a waffle place I’ve been craving.”
“Done. I’ll pick you up at nine.”
I think he means nine o’clock in the morning. You know, breakfast time. But later that night, while I’m doing the dinner dishes, there’s a knock at my door.
Exhausted after a full shift at the bookstore and an evening of chores, I shuffle to answer it.And who do I spy through the peephole? A chipper-looking Ian in a tweed jacket and plaid scarf. He has a single red rose, but he’s not just dropping it off. Finally, he’s waiting on the porch for me to open the door.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry, so I just turn the handle and stick my head out. “You’re a little early for our date, aren’t you?”
“Nope. It’s nine o’clock on the dot. You just didn’t specify which one.” His grin is so mischievous, I can’t help laughing with him. When I open the door all the way, he hands me the rose.
“It’s supposed to be abreakfastdate,” I remind him as I smell the flower, not even bothering to pretend it’s not a damn date. The sweet, spicy scent washes over me. It’s such a small gesture, aclichéfor goodness’ sake, and it still feels romantic. A little punctuation mark that says he thought of me, that he went out of his way to make this special.
“I’m taking you out for waffles at the end so it still counts.”
“I don’t know,” I hedge. My heart wants to spend time with him, but my body is tapped out after working all afternoon. Dog-Eared Pages is running Black Friday deals all week, and the store has been overrun with customers. I don’t think I sat down even once. “I’m really tired, Ian. And my feet hurt.”
“I’ll give you a foot rub, and then you can sleep. I’ll even read you a bedtime story.” He spreads hishands, beseeching. “Have you ever gotten better sleep than our nights together? Even pretzeled up on Conall’s couch, it was the best rest I’ve had in my life. Even though it gave me a dead arm.”
“Even with a kink in my neck,” I agree. “Okay. Why not.”
“Pack your PJs, pretty girl. I’ll be in the car.” He practically skips off the porch, and I have to chuckle at his absolute audacity, picking me up twelve hours early so it’s a sleepover date and not just a breakfast date. He knew exactly what he was doing when he set this up. And I know exactly what I’m doing, agreeing to it.
I’m not going to have sex with him tonight. Really. Nothing like that can happen again until after I talk with Richard and we’re officially separated.
But just in case I’m tempted, I pack granny PJs with a high neck and granny panties with a high waist. I take off my makeup instead of putting more on. And my outfit for tomorrow involves one of those SaveCo tunics, because there are only so many more days of autumn ahead and I don’t care if I look like a pumpkin.
I lock up on my way out, and a thrill runs through me. Why does this feel like I’m a teenager sneaking out of the house? Maybe it’s the chilly evening air, but suddenly, I’m not tired at all.
Ian hops out to open the car door for me, and I let him take my overnight bag. He stows it in the back before helping me into the passenger seat. “You want to go out tonight or stay in?”
