Page 65 of Petals of Blue: Part Two
Her lips pull into a smile that absolutely warms my soul. I did that. I made my woman smile. "You're my woman. All kinds of beautiful, complicated, driven, and downright sexy when you stand up to Felix."
At this, Blue laughs and shifts closer to me so she can rest her head on my shoulder. "Sometimes I worry I'm not enough. Or like I could have done better. Or maybe I did too much for myself and not for her."
"Ah," I hum and tickle my fingers down her arm. "Is this what people call mom guilt?"
She giggles this time, all high-pitched and happy. "That is exactly what they call it. And I'm starting to wonder if it ever goes away."
"I don't think so. My mom asked me the other day if I felt like she had ordered too much pizza when we were younger. Dad said she was feeling guilty for not making enough home-cooked meals for me and Nichole. Who, by the way, is very excited to have you back in class soon."
"Kevin won't let me," she pouts.
I laugh this time. "Girl, Kevin is the least of yourworries. We still might have to convince Felix that you can talk again."
More giggles and even a soft snort slip between her lips. She sighs, deflates a little and looks up at me. "I suppose we should head up, huh?"
"Uh huh," I mutter, my focus now completely on how close our lips are to one another.
"Jared," she hums and licks her bottom lip.
"Yeah?"
"Kiss me first. Please," Blue begs.Fucking begs.
Without preamble, I press my mouth to hers. We lock lips a few times, starting our kiss slow and sweet. Holding myself back is hard, but ever so gently, I lick her lip. She teases me with a small swipe of her own, but we don't take it any further.
It's not a hot and rabid kiss, but it's perfect. Intimate without scorching hot passion. Connecting. Even when we pull back and hold hands all the way up to her apartment, I still feel connected to Blue on a new level.
I am hers, and I'm almost positive she just decided she's mine.
Forty-Five
BLUE
“Violet?" Reaching out, I touch her knee. We've been sitting in the living room for a few minutes now. The men are in the kitchen, making breakfast and also giving us space.
I figured since I came in with a latte for her and asked to talk, she would have jumped at the opportunity to saysomething. Honestly, I don't even care if she yells or demands answers; I just want her to talk to me.
Yet her attention has been only on the lid of her cup. I'm worried and unsure about this conversation. Wehaveto have it. There's no ignoring the shit she heard and what she said to me. I also need to apologize.
With a deep breath, I gather the courage to be an adult. "I'm sorry for running away. It was an immature reaction. I should have stayed and talked to you about what I was feeling."
"What were you feeling?" she murmurs, glancing up at me. That one look shows me a flash of guilt.
God, what do I say? I don't want to make her feel worse. "I was feeling sad and confused."
Curling in on herself even more, Violet sniffles. "I'm sorry."
Is it right to brush this off, or do I accept her apology? My automatic response would be to just say it's okay, even though it's not. Violet wasn't thinking about the impact of her words, and, like Jared said, this is a prime learning opportunity for her.
"I understand you had a lot of emotions. All is forgiven, V." It feels super weird to say that to her. Acknowledging that she made a mistake feels wrong when all I want to do is protect her from icky feelings.
She perks up. "Really? You aren't mad at me?"
Christ. "No, honey. I'm not mad. Can you forgive me for running like that?"
"Yes," she nods rapidly and even inches closer to me.
Violet and I have had plenty of fights in the past but never about something so serious. We're in new territory, and she's looking to me to guide us through this uncomfortable turn of events.
