Page 69 of Love Hate Relationship
“I was trying to get her off me. She caught me off-guard for a moment, but I never kissed her back. Please, believe me. I would never do that to you.”
She lowered her head, taking her eyes from me and gave it a shake. “I thought…”
“Thought what?” I prompted.
When she spoke again, her voice was so quiet I almost couldn’t hear, but once what she said registered, a part of me wished I hadn’t. “I’ve never been good enough for anyone.”
“That’s not true,” I ground out, using her hair to tip her head back up so I could see her. “Baby, you can’t believe that—”
“None of my foster families kept me,” she continued, each word gutting me. “My own mom didn’t want me. The boy who asked me to prom only did it as a prank so he and his friends could make fun of me. I hardly had any friends growing up, and until I met Carson, I never had a family. When I saw you kissing her, I just thought—”
“That I was just like everyone else,” I finished for her, even though it killed me.
She nodded on a muffled sob and tried to drop her head again, but I wasn’t having it.
“Look at me,” I demanded. When her heartbroken gaze finally met mine, I spoke the words I knew were the God’s honest truth. “I’m in love with you.” Her mouth dropped open on a gasp, but I wasn’t finished. “When you ran away from me? That was the worst moment of my life.”
“But—”
“No buts. Nothing compared to the pain I felt when I thought I had lost you. Not what happened with Bree, not losing my brother,nothing. It hurt in a way I’m not sure I could survive. I have never,everloved someone the way I love you. What I felt for Bree isn’t even a shadow of what I feel for you. Do you get that? For the first time in my life, I am completely in love with someone else. I can’t lose you, Navie. I can’t.”
“You love me?”
“My life didn’t start until I met you, and it can’t continue if you’re not in it.That’show much I love you.”
Her voice broke on a sob, but when she responded with, “I love you, too,” I thought I had to be dreaming.
“Really?”
“Yeah,” she sniffled. “I love you, too. I have for a while, but I was just too terrified that I’d get hurt again to admit it.”
I pulled her to me for a tight hug, wanting to feel every inch of her against me. I’d never been hungry for someone’s touch the way I was for hers. I held on for dear life, afraid that if I let go, she’d disappear. I could have spent the rest of my life that way, but when she let out a wheeze and a, “Honey. Can’t. Breathe,” I forced myself to loosen my grip.
“I’ll never hurt you like that, baby. I’m sure there will be countless times in our life together when I’ll piss you off beyond belief, but if you’ll let me, I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for all the heartache you’ve ever felt.”
“That’s a really good promise.” She giggled.
Leaning down toward her upturned face, I pressed my lips against hers. “I thought so, too.”
“I could have done without the wholepissing me off beyond beliefpart, but other than that, it was a pretty damn good speech.”
I pulled back just enough to see her eyes as I chuckled. “You’re seriously criticizing myI love youspeech right now?”
“I’m just saying.” She shrugged with a knowing smirk. “It could have been better. Maybe next time write something out ahead of time.”
“I flew my ass all the way to Texas, risked life and limb with your trigger-happy brother to profess my love to you, and you’re giving me shit about not writing out a heartfelt declaration beforehand?” Tipping my head to the ceiling, I lamented loudly, “Why me, Lord? Seriously!”
Navie’s happy laughter pulled my attention back down. “Just got lucky, I guess.”
“I’m ignoring you right now because I’m just so goddamned happy to see you again. It’s like I can finally fucking breathe.”
Navie snuggled into me, her arms wrapped around my waist tightly as we stood there, simply living in the moment. “Rowan?” she asked quietly.
I pressed my lips against her cheek. “Hmm?”
“You really stink.”
I planted another kiss against her lips and spoke, “You’re a pain in my ass, you know that?”
