Page 196 of The Baby Bargain
Are you ever going to love me?
I swallow the jealousy that rises up in my throat.
He's not… we're not… I need to wait for him to respond.
"Yeah." He sucks in a shallow breath. "I can barely breathe, but it's not the same way it was."
I swallow hard. "Do you need something?"
He shakes his head. "You're shivering."
I pull my arms over my chest. "I'm okay."
He grabs the blanket from his couch. Drapes it over my shoulders.
Fuck, that is better. "How… how is it different?"
"She's happy."
Yeah, she is.
His expression stays dumbstruck. "I knew she was, but seeing it—"
"Are you jealous?"
His brow furrows with confusion.
"Of her boyfriend?"
"No." His voice is honest. "I'm happy for them."
"Yeah?"
He nodsyeah.
I pull my blanket around my shoulders. I want to wrap it around him and hold him and kiss him.
But I need to hear this first.
I need to know he isn't still in love with her.
I can deal with his Daredevil-esque martyr complex. But not a Daredevil-esque inability to get over his ex.
God, the super powered lawyer offers insight into so many things.
"Do you miss her?" I shift my weight to my foot. God, these shoes are ridiculous. I move to the couch. Tug at my skirt.
Chase drops to his knees. He peels my skirt to my ankles and undoes the buckle of my left shoe. "Parts of me do." His fingers skim my calf, ankle, heel. "It's the same way I miss varsity basketball." He sets my left foot down. Moves to the right. "I miss the smell of the ball, the squeak of sneakers, the thrill of a win. But I don't want to go back to that."
"You play basketball with Forest once a week."
"Yeah. One-on-one. And he kicks my ass every week." He undoes the buckle on my right foot. Slips my shoe off. "It's fun. And it scratches that itch. Mostly." His eyes meet mine. "It's not about basketball. It's about being sixteen and not—"
"Feeling like you were responsible for the entire world?"
"Yeah." His brow softens. "I didn't realize how bad shit was with Mom. Hunter was… he wasn't even partying yet. Wes… well, Wes is Wes, but he's always been okay."
"He and his girlfriend are cute."
