Page 40 of Only Ever You

I love you.

It’s on the tip of my tongue, but I want him to be the first to say it.

He rolls off me and lies on his back before rolling toward me and reaching for my hand.

“Where were you going this morning?” he asks.

I bite my bottom lip. “Home.”

His brows pinch. “Sneaking off without saying goodbye?”

Nodding, I try and avoid his eyes but it’s just too hard. “I wasn’t sure if you would want me to hang around.”

“Where did you get that idea?”

The intensity of his gaze makes me shrink back. “I … someone told me you weren’t one for relationships. She said?—”

“Who said?” His voice is calm but his left eyebrow twitches, his annoyance right under the surface.

“Mallory.” It’s barely a whisper, but he hears because his anger flares for just a moment in his eyes before the softness reappears.

“She’s Garrett’s ex, and she looks out for all of us. Sounds like she got a little over-zealous. Probably to protect you.”

“Do I need protecting?”

He grins. “Not in the way she thinks you do.”

I bark out a laugh.

“I’m crazy about you, Pippa. There is no one else. Mallory’s made me out to be worse than I really have been.” He sighs, running his thumb down my cheek. “I can’t deny there have been women in the past, but none who I’ve had this connection with. It sounds messed up because I’ve known you since we were kids, but I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole life for you.”

Tears well in my eyes, and I smile through them because is what I’ve always wanted to hear. My heart’s gone from being so empty to full as his words wash over me. “I’m sorry I doubted you.”

“I don’t know what this is between us, but I want it so badly. You, me, endless nights in my bed. Spending days together. All of it.”

I swallow hard. “That’s what I want too.”

He smiles. “How about I make us breakfast and then we have a lazy day together?”

“That sounds perfect.”

Chapter Thirteen

Deacon

One lazy day turns into another.

Apart from a brief period where Pippa dashed home to get clothing for work, we spent the whole weekend together.

And my heart feels whole for the first time in a long time.

Things between us are better than ever—not that I have much to compare it to, but I can see this lasting.

I haven’t told her just how much that time period after Dad caught Mum in bed with Lucas messed me up. My relationship with my father intensified—we grew closer than ever, which made it all the harder when he died. But my mother messed with my head, and I still struggle with trusting people even now.

If I can protect Pippa from that, I will. The last thing I need is her doubting the way I’m feeling. Now she’s told me she knew nothing about what was going on back then, I feel more confident with her.

She wanted to take her car this morning, but I know that car. It’s the one Lucas got when he was sixteen. I’m not sure why Pippa’s still driving around in the heap of junk, but she won’t be for much longer if I can help it.

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