Page 88 of The One for Me
Jasper smiles. “It’s not a bad thing. I’m glad she’s finally going to open up to you.”
“Well, I guess I am too.” Sean then shakes his head.
I hate that we’re being deliberately obtuse, but I wasn’t lying when I said I couldn’t do it now. There are things you tell someone in a car and then there are things you don’t. This falls in the latter category.
“Okay.” Jasper clears his throat. “We’re going to stop for something to eat, but we’ll call you when we get home.”
“Sounds good.” Sean rolls the window up, and we wave to them as we pull back onto the road. “We’ll head back to our house first to talk and then go to your parents.”
“All right.”
The car ride back is tense and quiet. Sean’s focus is on the road and mine on my feelings. One hour feels like an entire day, and I have a knot the size of Texas in my stomach that grows more each mile we get closer.
For so many years, I prevented myself from feeling this way about Sean, and it was so stupid of me. I should’ve seen how amazing he is and how perfect we are for each other. I love him so much more than I ever knew was possible.
We get to the entrance of the driveway, and Sean puts the car in park.
He stares up at the sign, hands tight on the wheel.
“What’s one truth about an arrow?” I say what I know he both needs to hear and hates at the same time.
“Just because you don’t hit the bull’s-eye, it doesn’t mean the other shots don’t count.”
There’s an edge to his voice, one that sounds a bit like dread. I put it there, but it’s me who is feeling it more than he can ever know.
Sean turns to me, his eyes full of questions. “What’s one truth about an arrow, Dev?”
God, how fitting my truth is. My hand lifts to wipe away the worry lines between his brows. “Forget the last arrow because only the next shot counts.”
“Whatever is in your past is just that . . . the last arrow.”
How I wish that were true. “Sean . . .”
“No, I just need to say this before you tell me whatever it is.” He pauses, and I nod. “I love you. Whatever you have to say to me won’t change that. I know there’s more to the story of your ex. You wouldn’t have been living the way you have been if there wasn’t. I can’t promise I won’t be mad, but not at you—for you. Understand?”
My heart is pounding, and a tear falls down my cheek. He says that, but will he still feel that way after I tell him? Will he still love me? God, I hope so because losing him will be impossible to live through.
Here I am, for the first time, in love with the right person at the right time, and the secrets I’ve kept might change the way he sees things. I’ve lied to him for so long.
“I hope you mean that.”
He leans in and kisses my lips softly. “I’ve got you, Devney. I’ve always had you, and I’ll have you still.”
It’s as though he has some code to my heart. He dials into whatever I need and is able to give it to me.
“Let’s go inside and talk.”
As we get to the end of the drive, my phone rings. I look down and see my mother’s number. I can’t do this now. If I talk to her, I will never get through this part with Sean and it’s imperative we talk first.
“Who is it?”
“My mother.”
I move to drop my phone into my bag but the ringer blares again.
“It’s my father’s number this time,” I say to Sean.
“Answer it.”
