Another tear slides down my cheek. “Please, don’t go… Don’t leave me.” I hold myself around the middle.
“Tell me why.”
It comes out as barely a whisper. “Because you belong with me. You’re mine, not hers.”
“What was that? I couldn’t hear you.” The crease at the corners of his lip turns up.
My tear covered face finds his. “Because you’re mine, Weston Croix. You’ve been mine from the beginning.”
“What are you saying?” He strides back toward me, boxing me in.
“I was wrong, okay. I’m fucking terrified of this, of us. Of love.”
“What are you the most afraid of, Wynter?”
“I don’t want to hate each other. I’ve seen my parents yell at each other for years. There’s no love there, Weston. What if I can’t do it? What if I’m not capable of loving you? What if I’m too broken?”
“You’re not broken. You’ll never be broken to me. We’re not perfect in so many ways, except the one that counts. Perfect for each other. And, Wyn… you are certainly capable and if sometimes you fall short, I’ll pick up the slack for you. Because sometimes I’ll fall short and you’ll have to pick up my slack too.” He cups my cheek with his palm and I gravitate in the warmth of it.
“How do you know?”
“Did you or did you not care when you found out how the people at work felt?”
“It hurt like hell.”
“Exactly, Wynter, and you wanted to fix it, right?”
I nod, yes. He raises a hand over my chest. “See, that right there tells me everything I need to know. You care. You have the biggest heart in there, waiting to open up and give itself away. Give it a chance, though. Give me a chance.”
“I’m so sorry, Weston.” My voice is filled with raw emotion. Fear flashes across his face again, and I grab his hand. My hand shakes, and I rub my thumb over his knuckles, trying to reassure both of us.
“Explain it to me, Wyn.”
“I told you. I’m scared. Scared of becoming them.” My eyes find the floor, but somehow I find a reason to press on.Him.“It’s not an excuse. I know that now. I’ve…wanted no other man the way I want you. The feelings overwhelm me. Consume me. I’ve become addicted to you and giving you the power to break my heart or hate me scares the ever living shit out of me.”
Pulling me into his arms, he holds on tight. I let mine slide around his waist, my tears yet again coating my cheeks.
He rests his chin on my head, breathing me in. His fingers twirling in circles on my back, calming me instantly. I pull away, looking up at him. “Let me say the rest.”
He nods, not saying anything else.
“We’ve been enemies since the beginning… but somewhere along the way our souls started speaking the same language. Dragging each other in deeper and deeper as the days trailed on and my traitorous heart started falling for you. I tried to fight it. I pushed you away so I didn’t mess us up and cause you pain, but each second you were away from me it felt like I was shattering a little on the inside. You’d pull me in time and time again, and I’d want to stay there. But then I’d remember that I didn’t know how to love you properly and I withdrew.”
“Oh, Wyn.” My name whispers on his lips. We’re broken. Two souls crying out for one another yet being kept apart.
“Will you ever be able to forgive me, West?”
“I’ve already forgiven you.”
“But why…” I search his eyes, looking for an explanation.
“Simple, I love you, Wynter Carlisle.”
Three tiny whispered words. Eight brief letters that would forever change my life.
I can almost feel it. Like a steady breeze, holding firm, fluttering around us and never letting go.
Sliding my arms up around his neck, I lean in like I’ve done time and time before, but this time feels different. Infinitely more intimate. I cling to him desperately, like a lifeline.