Page 47 of Mine to Love
“I didn’t say that you were. The key word there is you were acting that way. Not that you were doing it.” She leaned over and covered his mouth. “Your real problem is that you like me.”
He jerked his head. “Of course I do.”
“Yeah, well, when you get into that weird zone where liking someone is real, you get in your head and do to yourself exactly what you accuse me of doing to Gabriel.” She poked his biceps.
“And what is that?”
“Treat yourself like a damn child incapable of doing anything for yourself.” She lowered her chin. “I’m not asking you for anything and I know all you’re asking of me is a chance. I’m willing to give it, but now that you have what you want, you’ve already got one foot out that door.” She pointed. “All because you have some ridiculous idea in your head that you’re not smart enough, which is about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
He stared at her with unblinking eyes. His lips parted and let out a long slow breath. “And who in my family have we been talking to?”
“Tell me I’m wrong,” she said, folding her arms.
His chest rose up and down with each breath he took. Three minutes ticked by and he didn’t say a single word.
And his silence spoke volumes.
“Maybe it is time for you to go,” she whispered.
“No. You’re right.” He cupped her face and kissed her tenderly. Lovingly. It wasn’t the same confident Miles that took her to bed. It was a better version. A vulnerable version.
And she liked this man even more.
“I’m sorry. I can’t help it sometimes.” He ran his thumb across her cheek.
“Just like you’re not Charlie, I’m not Trixi or her family,” she said. “What you see or what you believe others see as limitations, I see as part of who you are. Watching how you deal with Gabriel has shown me just how wrong I’ve been with some of the ways in which I deal with him all out of loving him. I see how your family is with you, but what you seem to fail to understand is that the only person holding you back is you.”
“Now you sound like my father.” He took her hand and kissed her palm. “But these learning disabilities do hold me back. They have my entire life. Accepting them hasn’t been an easy road for me, but I wasn’t given much of a choice. I know I’m good at what I do, but it’s everything else in life that’s a struggle.”
She sighed. “We all have struggles, Miles. You keep telling me that about Gabriel. Why can’t you see it for yourself or understand how fucking smart and intuitive you are? I care about you, not whether or not you have to listen to an audiobook versus reading it for book club.”
“I don’t do book clubs.” He chuckled.
She slapped his shoulder. “You know what I mean.”
“I do.” He nodded. “And I hear your point. Trust me. You’re not the first person to give me this lecture, though you’re the first woman to.”
“So, are you going to be fully present so we can go back to a real after-sex cuddle before you do the walk of shame in the middle of the night?”
“I can handle that.”
“Good.” She eased into his arms, and he held her as close as he could, his fingers dancing across her skin as they watched some old show.
She yawned.
“You’re good for my soul, Liberty.”
Closing her eyes, she let her body relax and enjoyed the moment. She had no idea what the future held or even if she and Miles would last longer than a hot minute.
But it didn’t matter.
They needed each other to heal old wounds. She would help him get past the shit talk he told himself and he would help her with her new beginning.
What happened after that would be left to the stars.
11
Miles blinked his eyes open.
