Page 46 of Only You

“Feeling better?” I asked when he sat up and ran his hands through his hair like he was scrubbing away bad things.

He smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, sorry. It’s not healthy for me to be living here with her. I’m too angry this time.”

“I understand.”

He hung his head. “I know it’s not healthy to treat her like that, but the problem is I don’t fucking care. I’m sofuckingangry with her. I want her to know how much she’s hurt me, hurtus. Kennedy and Paul are about to be uprooted from their lives, and… God, I don’t know how to stop feeling that way.”

I thought of my mom, and how she couldn’t stop her feelings either and what she was trying to do to solve that. “Have you ever thought about talking to someone about it all?”

“Like a therapist?”

I nodded.

Daniel closed his eyes and sighed. “I saw one. After my dad died.”

“Did it help?”

“Sort of. She’s the one who encouraged me to move out as soon as possible. And, aside from leaving Paul and Ken at risk, she was right. I’m happier when I’m not living here.” Daniel looked down at his hands and then met my gaze. “When I get back to UT, I’ll go see someone at the Psych Clinic.”

“I just want you to be happy, you know? What kind of friend wouldn’t want that?”

“Peter?”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t want you to be my friend.”

My stomach tightened. “You don’t?” What had this whole evening been for then, if he didn’t want me around after all?

“I want to be more than friends.”

I exhaled hard. “Oh, I thought you meant…”

Realization flashed in his eyes. He touched my chin and slid his hand to cup the back of my head. “No. Despite what happened between us in Nashville, and how that might have looked to you, I don’t make out with my friends.”

Friends kiss sometimes.

“Yeah, I don’t either.”

Daniel’s smile was a little heartbreaking, but he drew me into a hug. “Good.”

Breathing in the scent of his hair, I murmured, “But are you sure? I messed up last month and—”

“I don’t care anymore.”

My heart didn’t seem to care either. Because I’d always known deep down that friends didn’t kiss. Not like we had tonight. And they didn’t do all that we’d done in Nashville either—no matter what Adam had once said to justify his behavior with me.

“Okay, then,” I whispered, my throat tight and that champagne feeling in my veins. “I don’t care either.”

Daniel kissed my nose and then my lips. “So we’re going to try dating?”

“Yeah.”

“Boyfriends?” His voice was breathy, and I could feel his heart beating as we hugged each other on the bed.

My own heart was pounding, too. “Boyfriends,” I agreed.

Daniel grinned at me. “Your hair’s a mess. I love it.”

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