My heart clenched. It clenched so hard I think it cracked.
I gathered him close, as if I could heal whatever ailed him with my strong will alone. “I don’t care,” I told him—hell,the entire universe. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it,” I swore.I’ll deal with it.“I’m not going anywhere. I’m with you now. I’m all in.”
He pulled back enough that I could see the disbelief and hope warring deep in his silvery eyes. “What?”
“You’re mine.” I claimed him. “I’m never letting you go.”
Decision made. Conflict resolved.Consequences pending…
If loving him ended up killing me, I’d at least make sure he survived.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-THREE
Rett
“I have rheumatoid arthritis,” I confessed for the very first time in my life.
Being in his arms with fifty hugs in my lap made me brave. And so did the look of possession in his eyes.
And maybe just the teeniest, tiniest part of me also wanted to test him. Because I wasn’t going back to waking up alone. And in life, I’d found the best way to learn what someone really thinks of you is to tell them your truth. Probably why I had no friends until like a week ago. Getting rejected didn’t feel good. And I was already in pain.
Hiro’s body stiffened. “You’re too young for arthritis.”
“They really shouldn’t have called it that. It’s really more like the body attacks itself,” I said. “It causes pain and inflammation in the joints but in other parts of the body as well.” At least, that’s what I read. Beyond the research I’d done, I only knew what I felt.
“They who?” he asked like he was about to pick a fight.
“Are you jealous?”
“Yes, and I’m a mean bastard, so just tell me.”
I giggled. “You aren’t mean.”
“Oh, I am. Just not to you.”
“Or Haz. You call him half-pint.”
“Ooo-weee. Is that jealousy I detect?”
“Yes,” I said. If he could admit it, then I could too. “I thought I was special,” I muttered.
“You aren’t special. You’re the reason my self-control stopped working.”
Kissing him was way better than talking to him.
He made a sound as if he realized the error of his ways. “Let me rephrase. Special ain’t nothing.Youare the standard everyone else has failed to meet. Special isn’t near enough to get me to turn my back on my own code. But you are.”
“You have a code?” I asked, trying not to feel dizzy from the amount of butterflies fluttering around my insides. I mean, I guess talking to him was pretty good.
“Doesn’t everyone?”
“I don’t.”
He reclined. “You don’t need a code.”
“Why not?” I wondered.
