Page 84 of Make You Love Me
He’s done nothing wrong. It’s all me. I pushed him away and forced him into doing the one thing I feared he’d eventually do on his own—leave.
“I need to feel and fully believe that when you choose to give your heart to me, you’re handing over all of it. All of you.”
With a sniff, I nod, and he swipes a tear from my cheek with his thumb.
“Will you go…for me?”
A long, burning exhale has my shoulders drooping. I drag my hands over my wet face before grabbing the phone. “This is insane.”
“I like that you think hanging with boring ole me would be more fun.”
“I don’t just think it.” I glance his way, soaking in the love in his eyes, then open the texting app. “Wait. I can’t go.” I set the device back on the floor.
“Why not?”
“He asked about tonight. We still need to drive back, and I’m not leaving you alone.”
“I’ll call the guys. They’ve been asking about getting together. We can have a poker night at the apartment. I’m still feeling lucky.”
Exasperated by his endless index of answers, my eyes glance at the ceiling, and I wonder if he’s talking about his gambling luck or what happened between us afterward.
“Which ones?” I ask, eyeing him with suspicion. “Guys I can trust, or guys who will want to find trouble?”
“Just Wes and Peter and maybe one more.”
“Wes is a firefighter/EMT, right?”
“Yeah. See, he can help if something happens. Nothing to worry about.”
“I guess.”
He leans forward, propping his forehead against mine. Lost in his gaze, I didn’t catch him stealing my phone until he places it into my hand.
“Text him.”
“You’re infuriating.”
Me:When and where?
Clark:Marcello’s 7 p.m.
Me:See you there.
I hold the screen up to show Jordan. “Happy?”
“Mostly.”
“Great.”
???
Jordan
“Nora, you remember Wes and Pete?” I ask when my friends enter the apartment.
“How could I forget?” She sets down a box of poker chips on the card table she borrowed from a neighbor and waves.
“And this is Q, short for Quinton. We went to Basic together.”
