Page 81 of I Knead You Tonight

“I read online that girls can’t resist a guy when he’s wearing gray sweatpants and a white t-shirt.” I shrug. “If we’re gonna fight, might as well shoot for some mind-blowing makeup sex afterward.”

She’s furious, standing there arms crossed, foot a-tappin’ away, not even caring about my brilliant stroke of genius.

Oh, boy. I’m in for it now.

“Tell me how you know him.”

“We talked.”

“What does that mean? Elaborate for me. Talk to me like I’m really dumb and spell it out.”

“It meansI”—I stab at my chest—“did what you didn’t have the fucking balls to do, okay? I told that sad sack of shit to walk out of your life and Riker’s if he wasn’t going to fully be in it. I told him to fuck off for you.”

Her mouth drops open.

Closed.

Open.

Closed.

“Are you fucking serious?” she explodes, storming toward me. She beats at my chest with her tiny fists. “Why, Winston? Why would you do that? How could you? I—”

“Because!” I scream back, grabbing her shoulders and holding her still. She stares up at me with wide, frightened eyes. “Because,” I repeat softer. “Do you have any idea how excruciating it was to watch you come into work day after fucking day, your belly growing bigger and your tears lasting longer? Do you have any clue how much it killed me to watch you break apart over that tool?” I grab her chin. “How much I wanted to rescue you?”

She pushes out of my hold. “I don’tneedrescuing, Winston. It wasn’t your place to say anything to him. What happened between us wasmybusiness. You had no right.”

“Maybe you’re right,” I say. “Maybe it wasn’t my place, but I did you a favor and we both know it.”

“Riker is going to grow up without a dad because of you.”

“Bullshit. You don’t have to be a kid’s biological father to be a dad to them. That’s not how it works. And because of what I did, he’s going to grow up with the dad he deserves. You and I both know it.”

She glances away, because she knows I’m right.

I saved her the grief of having to do it herself. She should be thanking me, not bitching at me.

“You still had no right.”

“I didn’t, but I’m not going to apologize for helping you, Drew, just like I won’t apologize for getting you out of that shitty apartment or paying for your car. It’s just not going to happen. Get over it.”

“I don’t need your help,” she says forcefully. “Stop trying to save me.”

“You can’t expect me to stop doing that.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“Because I care, okay?” I shout. “I fucking care about you!”

She stumbles back, mouth dropped open in shock.

“Why is that such a surprise to you?” I push.

“Because you don’t care about anything.”

“That’s not true. I care about a lot.”

“Not anything that matters.”

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