Page 27 of Dark Cravings

The next day I decided to have a conversation with Shelby to see if we could come up with something to deal with Kenley. I didn’t want to pressure her but I did want to make her see that this was something that could work. It could be something wonderful.

Thomas: Hey, Shelby .

Shelby: Hey, Thomas. What’s up?

Thomas: I wanted to talk. Any chance you could come over?

Shelby: I would like that. What’s your address?

Thomas: I’m at 356 Shannahan Blvd. I’ll see you soon.

Shelby: GPS says 25 minutes. I’ll be there shortly.

I put my phone beside me and started a pot of coffee. I didn’t know how Shelby was feeling but I hadn’t been sleeping very well this week and needed the pick-me-up. I let her in when she arrived and kissed her gently. Not wanting to get out of control before we’d even talked, I broke the kiss. I wanted this woman so badly but there were more important matters at hand.

“Would you like some coffee?”

“Oh my God, yes. I feel like a zombie today. I swear I haven’t slept all week.”

“I haven’t been sleeping all that well either. I don’t know about you but this shit with Kenley has hit me hard.”

“Me too,” she said sadly, taking the mug from me and adding milk to it. “What are we going to do?”

“I’m honestly not sure,” I said, leading her to my living room.

I sat on the couch and I was happy when she sat right beside me. I set my coffee beside me and put my arm around her. She leaned into me and I squeezed her tight.

“I miss her. I’m not used to going this long without being around her.”

“I know. I miss her too. We need to figure out a way to make her see this is real and that it can work.”

“Well, talking to her did no good.”

“I wonder if pointing out how well it works for Seb, Chase, and Raven would help. Hell, maybe they could talk to her about her concerns.”

“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea at this point. She may feel threatened by that.”

“Hmm, you could be right. Do you think she felt that way when we were both there to talk to her?”

“I don’t think so, Thomas. I mean, she invited both of us there.”

“Yeah but look at how well that went.”

“I think that was more the situation that scared her off than her feeling ganged up on.”

“Still, do you think it would be worth one of us talking to her one-on-one?”

“I suppose it couldn’t hurt. It should probably be you though.”

“Why is that?” I asked, truly curious.

“Because honestly, I’m still feeling pretty damn emotional and I feel like you could control your emotions better.”

“Okay, I’ll see what I can do. What about you and I, Shelby? What happens to us if she doesn’t come around?”

“I don’t know,” she said sadly. “Could it really work with both of us? I’m a switch, Thomas. Do I give up a part of myself to make a relationship work with you? What if I started to resent you?”

“Shelby, I don’t want this to end,” I said, brushing a kiss across her temple.

---