“Where would I find a bus to Wisconsin?” he asked a woman in a red vest. “Cedarburg.”
“Follow the signs for the departure terminal,” the person replied, pointing. “What bus line are you looking for? Greyhound or…”
“I don’t know,” he said hoarsely, plowing his fingers through his hair.
The woman seemed to pick up on his distress. “I’m pretty sure there’s a group down there now waiting to depart. Terminal nine. It would be going to Philly first—”
Leo was already running, dodging people with suitcases to propel himself down the escalator, sweeping the massive lower floor for Reese. There was no group actively waiting to board a bus. Was he in the right place?
He would never be sure what caused him to turn around and move the opposite direction, past the escalator blocking his view. Maybe it was sense of Reese being close. Whatever the reason, through the glass, he spotted her. Waiting in a line outside to board a bus, purple coat pulled tightly around her body, suitcase in hand.
Relief almost capsized him.
“Reese!” Leo shouted her name and forced his unsteady limbs to move, to go to her, throwing himself out the door into the dark, windy underpass. “Reese.”
She whipped around, her expression astonished. “Leo?”
“You’re still here. Thank God, you’re still here.” Pulse going a thousand miles an hour, he took the suitcase out of her hand and set it away, out of her reach. “Enough of this. You’re coming home with me.”
“What?” she sputtered. “No. I’m not. I’m going home. My home.”
“This is your home,” he growled, taking her by the arms, aching so deeply he could barely get a breath. “I’m your home, Reese. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for last night. I was an asshole.”
“No.” Her disbelief was obvious. “No, you weren’t. You were right.”
Trying to stave off the mounting dread, Leo pulled her closer. “You’ve been sleeping in that tiny room, working yourself to the bone. Bleeding for this. All so you wouldn’t have to ask me for a favor, Reese. I can forgive the lying, all right? I understand why you felt you needed to. Just don’t get on that bus. Please.”
Tears rushed into her eyes, filling them so completely that a single blink sent moisture coursing down her cheeks. “I wasn’t good enough. I really tried, Leo. I wanted to stay here. Not just to dance, but for us. I gave it everything and it wasn’t enough.”
What this poor girl had been through. All alone. He wanted to wrap her up in his arms and rock her, protect her from the world. From pain and rejection. He might have been given that opportunity last night if he’d heard her out. But it couldn’t be too late. It couldn’t be. “Reese, listen to me. You’re bringing your things to my place. You’ve belonged there all along—we know that. Two weeks isn’t enough for anyone. You can have as much time as you want this way. All the time in the world.”
“Leo.” She laughed without humor. “No. I’m not letting you move some broke, unemployed girl into your apartment.”
“Some broke, unemployed girl?” He echoed in disbelief. “Don’t you dare talk about yourself like that, Reese. You’re a hell of a lot more. You’re the girl I love. I love you. You want an audition with my father? Done. I’ll make it happen today. This is nothing like what happened with Tate. I was so damn wrong to say that. You’re the opposite, sweetheart. You’re the exception to every fucking rule, okay?”
Reese didn’t seem to take a breath for long moments, eventually sucking in a quick one. “I love you, too.” She swiped at her eyes, probably unaware that she’d just sent his heart into a fit of jumping jacks. “But I had to do this on my own. It had to be my talent that got me chosen. Nothing else. I’d never really feel like I earned it. And you’d always question my intentions—”
“No, I wouldn’t.” Oh God, he’d fucked up so badly. Been careless and hurtful with his words. Now her belief in him was unstable. “That’s bullshit, Reese. Listen to me—”
She cut him off with a kiss, flooding his senses with her beloved taste and feel. “I’m sorry. I’m going home,” she whispered against his lips. “I couldn’t make it on my own. And I refuse to rely on your help. I’m not even sure I’d have it in me to try again.”
And he could see that. Could see how utterly deflated she was. It knifed him through the sternum to see her like that. So unlike her usual positive self. He’d ruined his chance to help her through it and now…she’d become unreachable. Buried under the snow bank of disappointment, a lot of which he’d caused. “So we love each other and you’re still leaving.” A spike embedded itself in his gut. “I don’t accept that.”