Page 57 of Finding Happily Ever After
The irony of what she was saying while simultaneously falling completely apart struck her as funny and she laughed a little as a sob escaped her. The resulting choking sound filled the space between them. She wiped her face and tried again. “Maybe I should say that Iwashappy with you.” She tried to smile but he was watching her with an expression she couldn’t read; it was starting to crack her heart wide open. “Aiden, I don’t know what happened with us or how it went so wrong so quickly. Maybe I should have told you I was a virgin. Honestly, I didn’t think it would matter and that it was my own personal thing to know, but—”
Aiden’s brain was very quickly catching up to what was happening. But not quick enough, because he was still having a whole hell of a lot of trouble processing that Natalie was standing in front of him. She was out of breath. She’d run.
To him.
Dammit. He should have been the one doing the running to her. He was an idiot. But he’d meant what he’d said. More than anything, he wanted her to be happy.
She was talking. “Aiden, Iamhappy with you. Happier than I’ve ever been in my whole life.”
But how?With everything that had happened after the best night of his life, how could that have made her happy? She deserved so much better.
“Maybe I should say that Iwashappy with you.”
Those words killed him. If he could rewind the last few days and start it over, he would literally giveeverything.
“Aiden, I don’t know what happened with us or how it went so wrong so quickly. Maybe I should have told you I was a virgin. Honestly, I didn’t think it would matter and that it was my own personal thing to know, but—”
“No. You didn’t owe that to me. I had no right to get upset with you. I just…”
He couldn’t stand it one more second. She’d probably push him away or slap him, but he didn’t care. He’d take whatever she could dish out. Aiden reached out and pulled her tight to him before crushing her lips with his.
He needed to taste her. He needed to feel her. He needed to know whether he could be the one to make her happy.
Startled, she didn’t immediately melt into his embrace. But then, a small moan and he felt the moment she let go.
He twined her hair through his hands, and as if his entire future depended on it—which maybe it did—he tried to convey every little bit of what he was feeling into that one moment.
When finally he pulled away, she looked up at him. Her lips parted, her breath coming in pants, no longer from the running, and her eyes held a question.
“Natalie.” Her name came out rough, almost choked. “I…everything that I said…that I did…” He couldn’t even stand it. He’d been terrible. He’d been mad ather. For what? For his own insecurities.
He probably should have given her space, but he couldn’t bear to not touch her. He kept one hand on her back, holding her close to him, and his other hand traced down her cheek. “Iwant to be the one to make you happy.” He’d never meant anything more. “And I think I can.”
She nodded slowly. “Iknowyou can.” Her head dipped. “I’m so sorry, Aiden. I should have—”
He held a finger to her mouth. “No. Never apologize. You didn’t need to tell me. You didn’t owe me that. I’m the one who should be apologizing. I never should have gotten upset with you. I panicked.”
A tear slipped down her cheek, but he wiped it away and made a silent vow never to be the cause of her tears again. Ever.
“You panicked?”
“Yes,” he said slowly. “It wasn’t fair of me not to tell you about Brenna and…” He swallowed hard. Even though he’d finally come to the realization, it was still hard for him to say. “I meant to and then….it doesn’t matter. I should have. And then, that morning, it was all too much to know that I’d kept something from you, and you’d kept something from me. And what I really want is a relationship with you that’s completely honest. No secrets. And I was afraid that if we started out this way that—”
“You want a relationship?”
He nodded and slid his hands down her sides until he was holding her forearms.
He was vaguely aware that they stood in the middle of the sidewalk where everyone in town could see them, but he didn’t care. He had a few things he needed to say to Natalie, and he had no plans to move until he’d said them.
“I do. Very much. I want a relationship built on honesty and trust. I’ve been hurt in the past, Nat, and I thought that this could be different. And then that morning…” He shook his head and dropped his chin to his chest. “I was wrong.”
Confusion lined her face, and immediately he regretted his choice of words. “No. I don’t mean it like that. I don’t mean that I was wrong about having that kind of relationship or having it with you.” He shook his head. “Never. Not even for a second.”
Natalie tilted her head and eyed him. “Then what?”
“I was wrong that one misunderstanding could or should destroy what could be a very amazing thing between us. I was wrong to think that ignoring it and pushing you away was the right thing. And I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you about Brenna long before then.”
Something flickered in her eyes and she took a deep breath. “Just the way I should have told you my secret.”
