Page 91 of Breaking the Rules
“I could have faded away. Iwasfading. Everything was going black, and I knew I could just let go and nothing would hurt anymore and no one could hurt me ever again.” She felt the goose bumps rise on her arms at the memory of the cold concrete under her and the warm spread of her blood as it left her body.
“Jesus, Waverly.” His arms banded around her tighter.
“But I held on because you did. You held my hand, and you talked to me. I heard every beautiful word you said, and I hung on to them, to your voice. I knew you were with me, and I didn’t want to leave you. You didn’t just save me from Ganim. You kept me here.”
She was crying now, and he crushed her against his chest, cradling her in his arms.
“My Angel,” he whispered.
“So don’t you ever tell me that you made mistakes that night. If it weren’t for you, Ganim would have gotten me long before then, and there wouldn’t have been anyone to save me. There wouldn’t have been anyone to hang on for.”
He kissed the top of her head. “And then I walked out on you like a scared, selfish asshole. I’m so fucking sorry, Waverly. I just loved you so much, and thinking that I almost got you killed… it destroyed me. If I couldn’t protect you, couldn’t keep you safe. I wasn’t good enough for you.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist. “It’s about time you apologize for the right thing.”
He gave a broken laugh. “I love you, Waverly Sinner. And nothing is going to stand in my way this time. I’m going to marry you, and we’re going to spend forever driving each other insane.”
She pulled back, but he wasn’t having it and yanked her against him. “Don’t argue with me. I’ll wear you down eventually. Even if it takes another five years. You will be my wife.”
“X—” But his mouth found hers and silenced her protest.
She broke the kiss breathlessly. “How about we just work on dating for a little while? We’ve never tried that before.”
He laughed against her hair. “You are the most infuriating, exhausting—”
She glared at him.
“Beautiful, sexy, smart, sweet, surprising woman I have ever met in my entire life,” he amended.
Waverly winced. “Crap. In the interest of honesty and stuff, I should tell you I met Calla for drinks.”
“Calla?”
“Jesus, X. Get some blood flow back to your head.” His penis was rigid against her. “Calla, your ex-girlfriend.”
He froze. “Why the hell were you having drinks with her?”
“She called and asked. And I was very curious about the woman after me, so I went.”
“What did you talk about?” he asked gruffly.
“Oh, you know, what’s hot in hair care for fall and whether or not we think global warming—” He pinched her. Hard. “Ouch!”
“Smartass,” he complained.
“You, you ass. We talked about you.”
“I assumed as much,” he said, exasperated now. “What specifically?”
“She wanted to let me know that you’re a great guy and I better not jerk you around.”
“She threatened you?” He didn’t sound mad. He sounded incredulous.
Waverly smiled, enjoying herself. “Not in so many words, but I’m willing to be extra nice to you just in case.”
He squeezed her.
“She’s good, X. Happy. Married and pregnant, and she wants to see you happy, too. She thinks that might involve me.”
