Page 131 of The Only Thing That's Real

“An unfortunate accident when you were a teenager could never change the way I feel about you. I’m so sorry you’ve had to keep that bottled up inside you all these years. You should have had someone to talk to about it.”

Ignoring my comments about him talking to someone, he deflects. “So, the childhood trauma isn’t a red flag, but the new look…?”

Leaning back, I pretend to inspect him, gripping his chin to turn his head left and right. “Besides the flat side, it’ll do.” I wink, so he knows I’m kidding.

“Ry, just tell me if you still want this. Want me. Because I love the hell out of you and want nothing more than to spend the rest of my days proving to you how much.”

Knowing my next words could end my time with the only man I’ve ever loved, I say them anyway.

“You talk as though being with you is some sort of sacrifice, when the truth is the life you’ve proposed sounds like a dream. It’s you who would be sacrificing everything you’ve ever wanted. You know I don’t want to get married, and I can’t give you children. It’s you who needs to consider all ofmy red flags. You might wake up ten years from now wishing you had thought things through.”

“What’s there to think about? I’m yours and you’re mine. That’s all there is to it. I’m in this for the long haul. Take as long as you need to work through what you need to. My offer won’t expire. But baby, when I say long haul, I mean it. My great grandpa lived to be a hundred and five and my grandpa Chuck is in his nineties. I ain’t going anywhere.”

He pulls me against his chest. We hold each other, neither of us speaking. He’s said all he needed to say. Now I have to decide if I’m selfish enough to take his forever.

We don’t let go of one another until the heat of the day has our T-shirts sticking together where our sweaty bodies touch. “Don’t think I forgot you mentioned a gift? Let’s go inside and see what you’ve been up to.”

Chapter Sixty-Five

Ryan

Clutching the box to my chest, I’m no longer as certain about it as I was when I first got home, and I was already unsure if I’d made the right call with this gift.

When we entered the house, I marched him straight to the bathroom, where he saw himself for the first time. “Who the hell is this guy?” was what he asked the man staring back at him in the mirror.

Shock is the only word to describe Knox’s reaction to his new look. I left him on his own, giving him a moment to adjust, while I tried to find somewhere to hide the big-ass box he’d already spotted on the kitchen table. Unfortunately, he’s joined me before I’ve had a chance to stash his gift.

Like a kid on Christmas, he reaches for it. “Gimmee, Gimmee.”

“Maybe now isn’t the time.”

“You saying my new look isn’t worthy of your gift? Having second thoughts?”

“Don’t be stupid.” Box still in hand, I take a step backward.

He matches me step for step in my attempt to retreat. “Then let me have my present.”

Holding a hand out in front of me, I stop him. “It’s been an emotional day. This can wait.”

“Baby, what’s in the box?”

I can’t help but giggle. “Okay, Brad Pitt.”

Smiling, he wails, “What’s in the box?” Quoting Mr. Pitt’s famous line from the David Fincher film,Se7en.

After another chuckle, I take a deep breath, hoping I haven’t made a huge mistake. What if the contents are too much for him today? “We can save it for another time.”

“Ry, I may be bald, but I’m strong. I can handle whatever you got. Besides, I know you wouldn’t put something that would hurt me in a pretty box with a bow on it. That would be cruel.”

“You’re not bald. You have a full head of hair. If I’m being honest, you look great for an old man.”

“Long haul, baby. I’m not even halfway there.” He leans into my space, kissing me long and slow. Seducing me while he steals the gift from my hands.

“Smooth, McKinnon.”

“You knew I was gonna get my way in the end.”

My heart thunders against my rib cage. “Wait, one sec. I’ll meet you on the couch.” I snatch the box from him, carrying it with me as I race down the hall to grab my computer.

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