His eyes flew open and found mine. "You…want me?"
"And I'm so angry you made me say it first," I sobbed.
"Mireya—"
"I want you, even though you push me away and you make it nearly impossible to reach you." My hands were shaking uncontrollably. "I want you, and it’s the most painful thing I've ever felt because you don't want me. Not really."
"That’s the furthest thing from the truth," he said.
"Is it? You have spent an entire month making sure you weren't near me."
"Because being near you and not being allowed to touch you was torture." He crossed the remaining distance between us in two strides. "Every time you smiled at Emma, I wanted that smile for myself. Every time you fell asleep on the sofa, I wanted to carry you to your bed and stay there with you. Every time you say my name, I wanted to hear it in ways I had no right to dream about."
I gasped, my heart twisting like it had forgotten how to beat.
"I’ve been in love with you for a while now, I don’t even know when it started. You made my house feel like a home." He took another step until he was inches away. "I love you, and it terrifies me to my core. Because loving you means I could lose you, and that would break the parts of me I've worked so hard to keep numb."
"Then stop losing me," I whispered. "Stop pushing me away."
"What if I'm not what you need? What if I fail you?"
"What if you don't?"
"What if I mess everything up and hurt you? What if?—"
"What if we're brave enough to find out together?"
He stopped talking. He was so close that I could inhale his natural scent. I could feel the heat radiating from his body and see the rapid rise and fall of his chest.
"I don't know how to love someone without being afraid of the end," he admitted.
"Then go ahead and be afraid. Just don't let the fear stop you from trying with me."
"I’ll probably fail at this. I might pull away or forget how to be what you need."
"Then I’ll be the one to remind you."
"You make it all sound so simple."
"It's simple, Riven. You just have to choose me every single day. Even when it’s scary or hard. Even when your instincts tell you to run back into the dark." I reached up and touched his face. "Just choose me. That’s all I'm asking for."
His hand covered mine, pressing my palm to his cheek. "What if choosing you means I lose you anyway?"
"What if not choosing me means you lose me right now?"
He stared at me for a long moment, something shifting and rearranging behind his eyes as his walls finally crumbled.
"I’m going to kiss you now," he stated.
"Okay," I whispered.
"If I start, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop."
"Then don't stop."
He leaned down, and his lips finally found mine.
I pressed closer into him, my hands fisting in the fabric of his shirt as my body arched toward his warmth. He let out a low, rough sound, and his arms wrapped tightly around me.
