“I know my history screams hump and dump. I’ve never had a real relationship. I’ve kept women at arm’s length my entire adult life. But the truth is, I’ve always wanted what my parents have. I want the life, the house, the kids, everything. However, I knew it wasn’t just going to fall in my lap, so I’ve continued being me, while keeping my eyes open.”
“Okay,” I say, trying to understand what he’s saying.
“I was content just having fun. Until I met you.”
My eyebrows pull up in question as he takes another small bite. “I wasn’t any fun?”
“No, you were more than fun, Oaklee. You changed the game. A game I didn’t even know I was playing until it was too late.”
“Stop speaking in metaphors,” I insist, reaching for the spoon and grabbing a big bite.
He grabs my wrist holding the spoon and stops my movement. “I lied about my reasoning for wanting to spend the night, and the reason I’m scared is if I lay my heart out there, you might not feel the same. But I don’t know that I can go back and pretend I’m not completely in love with you, beautiful. It’s too hard. So, if you tell me you’re not ready for a relationship, that you just want to be friends, I’ll do it. But you need to know my feelings are more than that, and I’ll be working my ass off to not only prove it to you, but to show you until you realize you love me too.”
My vision becomes blurred as tears fill my eyes. “You…love me?”
He takes the spoon and sets it in the carton before standing up and moving to where I sit. He squats in front of me, using the pads of his thumbs to wipe the wetness off my cheeks. “Yeah, I love you.”
I bring my hands up to my face and cry.
Realization washes over me. Not that I want to think about my ex at a time like this, but when was the last time I heard him say those three little words? He was always too hurried to get off the phone, and he’d never text me just to let me know he was thinking of me and loved me.
But here’s this beautiful man, laying his heart out there. He’s exactly what I didn’t even realize I was looking for, and I’m so damn lucky to have found him, despite how quickly it might have happened.
“Oaklee?” he whispers, carefully moving my hands off my face. “Are you okay?”
“I love you too,” I blurt out. “So much.”
His smile is slow but lights up his entire face. “Yeah?”
I nod. “Yeah. It’s a recent realization, but I thought you only wanted the friends with benefits thing. That’s why I didn’t want you to stay the night with me. I knew if I had you in my bed all night, I’d never want you to leave or never recover when you did.”
He moves, lifting me off the chair and taking my place, setting me down on his knees. “So, let me get this straight. You love me but didn’t want to say because you didn’t know how I felt, and I love you for the same reason.”
“That sounds about right,” I agree with a chuckle.
He claims my lips, and it feels so different this time. It’s like the first kiss all over again, but so much better. Real. Deep. Meaningful.
Love.
I don’t know how long we sit here, making out, but it feels like only a few seconds. However, by the way we’re both gasping to catch our breath, I’d say it was much longer. I slide my palms up his jaw, my fingertips dancing at the edge of his hairline. “I can’t believe you love me,” I whisper.
He threads his hands into my hair, holding me close as he gazes into my eyes. “Best day of my life was when I hit on you at the bar.”
“I turned you down,” I remind him with a grin.
“Yeah, but I got the woman in the end.” His smile is cocky, just as I’d expect it to be.
“Yes, yes you did,” I agree, brushing my lips across his. “Now, take me to bed, and promise you’ll spend the night.”
“I promise.”
Lifting me up, he carries me into the living room where he stops and makes sure the door is locked before walking to my bedroom and laying me on top of my bed.
We’re awake for the next thirty minutes, and when we’re both naked, sweaty, and spent, we curl up together and close our eyes. It’s the best night of sleep I’ve ever had, with the man I love sleeping right beside me.
It’s the start of something amazing.
EPILOGUE
