Page 79 of The Flirty Forward

“Yes but—”

“Do you love your students?”

I sigh. “Yes, but—”

“No buts, Baby. You love. End of story. You are capable of loving.”

“But not of being loved.” I blurt out the words and regret them instantly. “I didn’t mean that—”

“You did, and that’s okay.” His voice is so gentle. “I have a feeling I’m not going to want to hear stories from your childhood, and I’m going to have to find a way to love your parents.” He takes a deep breath. “I realize you’re going to have to find your own path; I can’t make you know that you’re loved. But you can better believe I’m going to spend my life provingthat you are worthy of love. Because you are. You are so worthy of love, Stephanie. Not just my love, but others as well.” Tears well up in my eyes, and I hate it. I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from letting them fall. His face softens, and he reaches up and catches a tear that drips down the side of my cheek. “Just give me fifty,” he says softly.

“Fifty what?” I ask.

“Years. Fifty years to love you. It won’t be enough, but it will be a start.”

“How do you know that’s really what you want...that this is really what you want?” I’m interested to see where things go with him, but he seems all the way in already.

“I guess it’s just part of who I am. I’ve always known what I wanted in life and went after it. And from my very first interaction with you, I knew I wanted you to be mine.”

Chapter 31

Stephanie

"But that’s just it. Why me?” I ask, trying to understand.

He grins. “Because you stood up to me.” I scoff. “Seriously. Do you know how many people in my life don’t argue with me? People always say what they think I want to hear. Women dote over me.”

I roll my eyes and move away from him. “Yeah, it’s a real hardship.”

“Okay, that didn’t come out right. I just mean that you argue with me and won’t let me get away with anything. It was really refreshing because you’re like the other women in my life—my sister, my mom, and my sister-in-law. And I love sparring with you; I’m pretty sure it’s my favorite pastime.”

“Oh goodie. So if we get bored, we can just fight with each other?” I ask, lifting an eyebrow.

“Exactly.”

“I think you’d better check your chicken.”

He spins around and lifts the lid off the skillet. The smell hits me, and my stomach growls. He glances over at me. “We’d better put some food in that thing.”

A few minutes later, we sit down at his kitchen table. Every time it’s just the two of us, I think it’s going to be uncomfortable. But every time, it’s relaxing and easy. I’m beginning to realize that’s how it is with Sebastian; he just makes it easy. The conversation flows from my teaching to his hockey schedule to his family. At this point, he covers my hand with his much larger one. “Thank you again for what you did for Kayla.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“Well, to my family and to me, it’s a huge deal.”

“Did she get the stitches out yet?” I want to shift the conversation away from me.

“A few more days yet, I think.” He clears our plates away, and I pick up our cups. “Hey, I’ve got a few things coming up I’d love to have you with me for, if you’re interested.”

“What are they?” I ask as I put our water glasses in the dishwasher.

“The first is a friends and family day. It’s a day where our family and friends all have lunch together and even play one giant game of hockey. It’s really fun, and I’d love to have you there for it.”

“Won’t your family be there?”

“Nah. It’s more for like wives and girlfriends and kids.”

“Oh, is that what I am now?” I tease. “Your girlfriend?”

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