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I laughed. “She’s gonna be so mad when she finds out. What’s the other one?”
“I knew where Isra was picking for our honeymoon. And I let her do it.”
“You did? Why?”
“I hoped I could be close to you,” he said, his arms tightening. “And I was.”
“You’re sneaky,” I said. “I have one this time.”
“Yeah?”
“I think I might love you.”
He froze. “Really?”
“Yeah. Is that life-changing?”
“Yes. But in the best kind of way.”
“We have more to talk about tomorrow,” I said as my eyes closed. “Don’t think I’m letting you off easy. But I think I can fall asleep now.”
Levi hummed and his breathing eventually relaxed. And I finally drifted off.
Wakingup in the guest room was disorienting. What was even worse was that I was alone. Slowly, I rolled over and felt the sheets next to me. They were cold, and I frowned as I checked the time. I sighed.
It was well past ten. Levi was probably at work, and while I knew his job was important, I needed to talk to him.
Slowly, I peeled myself out of bed and went downstairs. I didn’t notice anything was off until the smell of food hit my nose.
Levi was in the kitchen cooking something, and I couldn’t resist a sigh of relief.
“You’re here,” I said.
“Of course I am. We have business to finish. First thing is a groveling breakfast.”
“You don’t havethatmuch to grovel for,” I said, but then I saw the spread of bacon and hash browns on the stove. “I’ll still take it.”
I grabbed coffee while he plated my food. He went all out for this meal, and my stomach was ready to eat everything he had cooked.
We sat down at the dining room table and I opened my mouth to say something first, but he beat me to it.
“I should have told you sooner. I’m sorry.”
“I get it,” I replied. “Admittedly, I probably wouldn’t have believed you about it at first. You were right about how much power Calvin has over me. I thought I was seeing things as they were, but I was seeing things how he wanted me to. I don’t want to live like that anymore. Thank you for being patient.”
“I get why you felt that way. It’s important that you know that if anyone grew up like you did, they would feel the same.”
“There’s not only that,” I said as I traced the patterns of the wood on the table. “Gram was pretty against love. And men in general.”
“Why?”
“Her first husband left the moment she got pregnant with my mom. She would always tell me about red flags she missed before her husband left, and I never wanted to miss them myself.”
“Did I have any?”
“How much you hated Calvin. At first, I thought it was that you wanted revenge. Then it was that you liked me but also hated him.”
“Idohate him, but you’re not a part of that.”