Page 109 of For the Plot
“I’m not going to beg for this.”
“I’d never ask you to.”
“I don’t trust you yet.”
“I don’t deserve it yet.”
I blink. He says it so easily. No defense. No pride. And just like that, my chest cracks open a little more. I lean back in my chair, trying not to crumble under the weight of this new version of him. Still Reece. Still intense. Still impossibly composed.
But stripped down. Open. Willing.
“Okay,” I say softly. “Then show me.”
He nods again, slower this time. Measured.
“I will.”
He watches me like he’s memorizing everything. Not just my face, but the set of my shoulders. The way I cross my legs. The slight tremble in my fingers as I reach for my coffee again, trying to act like his presence isn’t unraveling me one second at a time.
I raise my chin. “Well?”
Reece tilts his head. “Well what?”
“You’re the one who showed up.”
“I am.”
“So say something.”
He leans forward, forearms resting on the table, and when he speaks, his voice is lower than before—rougher. Steady but intimate.
“I will do everything you asked,” he says. “Exactly the way you asked it.”
I study him. Waiting for the catch.
“But,” he adds, “just so we’re clear…”
I arch a brow.
“I’m not doing it to win you back.”
That stings more than I expect. My breath catches, but before I can respond, he keeps going.
“I’m doing it because I love you,” he says simply. “Because even if you never let me touch you again, I still want to show upfor you. Every day. I want to earn your trust. Your laughter. Your time.”
My heart pounds like it’s trying to claw its way out of my chest.
He leans in just a little closer. “And yes, Skye… I’ll date you. I’ll woo the fuck out of you if that’s what you want.” His lips twitch. “But just know that at the end of it?” I hold my breath. “I’m going to make you fall in love with me all over again.”
I swallow, hard. “Cocky,” I murmur.
“Confident,” he corrects, a small smirk pulling at his lips. “Because I’ve already done it once.”
I laugh. It slips out of me, reluctant but real.
“Okay then,” I say, standing and grabbing my purse. “Let’s see what you’ve got, Mr. Blackwood.”
His eyes flash, sharp and hungry.
