Page 16 of Gift of You
“I told you, I needed to feed?—”
“Your cat. That’s what you said. But we both know that’s not why you left. What’s going on?”
He was angry and vibrating with it. But there was hurt in his eyes too. In my haste to leave, I hadn’t considered how it would make him feel.
I deflated, slumping my back against the door frame. “I’m sorry I ran out of there. It wasn’t your fault.”
He relaxed moderately, but there was still cautious concern in his eyes, like he wasn’t sure whether to believe me. “Then what was it?”
“I just... it’s been a long time since I’ve spent time with anyone other than Ally, and I guess I was overwhelmed.”
He looked up at me, eyes softening. “From everything you’ve told me, I’d think she wouldn’t want you to be alone. She’d want you to have friends, right?”
“Friends. Yeah. Sure.” My tone was laced with sarcasm.
“What?”
I blew out a breath, shaking my head as the thoughts and feelings inside me waged a battle. Louis placed his hand on my shoulder, the warmth of it burning through my sweater. I watched as a snowflake landed on his pinky, melting immediately. His nails were manicured, I noticed, clean and neatly trimmed. But it was still clear they were a man’s hands. Touching me. Sending heat surging through my body.
I finally dragged my eyes up to his. “My feelings are anything but friendly.”
13
LOUIS
I couldn’t have looked awayfrom him if I’d tried. There was heat in his eyes. And a healthy dose of fear. But I thought at the moment, it was the heat that was winning out.
“Can I come in?”
He swallowed hard, but gave a brief nod, then stood back to let me in. I stepped past him into his living space, my glasses immediately clouding at the warmth. I removed them, using my sweater to clear the fog, grateful for the distraction which gave me a moment to think.
I looked around his space, realizing it was the first time I’d actually stepped inside. It was cozy, with a worn recliner in the center of the room facing the TV, and books stacked on nearly every surface. There was a paperback sitting open on the arm of the chair, spine resting up, but I couldn’t see the title from here. I saw pens and a pad of paper on a small table sitting next to the recliner where a remote, a coaster, and a small lamp also resided. I wondered if it was the book he was preparing to narrate.
I turned back to face him, wanting to focus on the topic at hand. He was still standing by the door, fidgeting, like he didn’tknow what to do with his hands. Up until this afternoon, this man had been locked up tight, completely unreadable. But now, standing in the middle of his living room, I could see a myriad of emotions playing on his face like a prism reflecting rays of light. Confusion. Nerves. Want. Desire.Fear.
I’d started across the room, making my way toward him, but that last one had me pulling up short. Matthew was attractive as hell; I’d thought so from the moment I’d landed on his doorstep in nothing but a towel. A man like that, showing interest in me, would ordinarily be a green light. Let the sexy times begin. But it was clear he was battling something inside himself, and I wasn’t about to push him if he wasn’t ready.
“Why don’t you come sit down?”
“I’m okay.”
I sat on the loveseat adjacent to the recliner. “I’m not going to jump you, Matty. You don’t even have to sit next to me. I just want to talk.”
Cautiously, like a starved animal being offered a scrap of food, he crossed the room and took a seat in his recliner.
“What did you mean when you said your feelings were anything but friendly?”
He fidgeted with an invisible spot on his jeans, and when he finally looked up at me, he wouldn’t meet my eyes. “I think you know exactly what I meant.”
“I need you to say it. I don’t want there to be any misunderstanding here.”
He huffed. “You were looking at me like...”
“Looking at you . . . ?”
He shifted uncomfortably. “You just had this look in your eye and it made me feel...”
He kept trailing off, like he was afraid to give voice to his thoughts, but I thought maybe that was exactly what he needed to do. “Made you feel what exactly?”
