Page 52 of Eternally Devoted

They know you’re, like, a killer. Telling them how you feel should be easy in comparison.

Uncovering my face, I stare up at the man I’ve wanted for years. Now I’ve had him—kind of—and one thing I know for sure? I was right. He’s perfection. And my life will be stupid trash without him.

Same goes for Dash.

“Juniper—” he hedges, breaking the silence, but I take over.

“I’ve wanted to be your girlfriend for years,” I admit, slowly, carefully, making sure each word is crisp and clear.

His face softens. He freezes his soft stroking of my arms, his hazel eyes widening with surprise. He looks over at the cooling pan on the counter, then at the row of shoes against the wall before he finally returns his gaze to mine.

“I don’t… What?” he asks, wiggling a finger in his ear, almost comically. Only… he’s not joking.

I step toward him and he steps back, and we dance this way until his back is square against the wall, causing the black-and-white cat clock behind him to shift. The firm press of his back prevents the tail and eyes from moving, and it clicks on repeat as I rise to my toes, pressing my finger into his soft chest. “You heard me. I’ve wanted you to be my boyfriend for years, Sterling.”

I walk my fingers up his chest, and take charge of him, gripping his chin as I roll onto my toes. Dusting my lips against his, I whisper, “Kiss me if you understand.”

Our faces are so close together that finding his gaze is dizzying, but when I do, he closes his eyes and presses his mouth to mine. I smile against his mouth as he kisses me, and when it’s just getting good, I pull back, and take one step backward.

“Why have you never asked me out?” I ask, reaching for the low-hanging hem of his t-shirt. I love wearing his shirt. His eyes veer to the strip of skin exposed on my belly as I play with the shirt.

“I thought we were friends. I never thought you… I mean, Juniper, you’re gorgeous.” He looks up at me after his eyes veer to Dash’s door. “I didn’t think you’d see me that way. And then Dash moved in and you guys met and… I was the buffer, the thing standing between the two of you until you both realize how you feel.”

“Take it back.”

Sterling’s brows rumple. “Take what back?”

“What you said about yourself being a buffer. How you implied it would be crazy for me to want you. How you thought you were in the way of Dash and me being together. All of it. Take. It. Back.” My nostrils flare as I drive my heel into the ground, shock and anger coloring my cheeks, making the backof my neck fiery hot. “Take it back!” I shout, tears stinging my eyes. He steps forward, reaching for me with one hand as his face muddles in confusion.

I lower the shirt, covering my skin, and fold my arms over my chest just as Dash’s door squeaks open. He steps between us.

“What’s going on?” Dash draws nearer to me, spotting my shiny eyes. He turns to face Sterling, then looks at me again.

“I just told Sterling that I’ve wanted him for years. And do you know what he said?”

Dash shakes his head, sadness edging into his eyes. That subtle flash of sadness confirms all of my suspicions.

“He thought that he was our buffer. As soon as either you or I realized that we have feelings for one another, he’d become obsolete. He thought that we want each other, and each other only.” Watching, Sterling’s gaze slides to Dash, and I follow. Dash blinks at Sterling in silence for what feels like a long time, but is likely only a handful of seconds.

But they are important seconds.

Decision-making, life-changing seconds.

I know all about those. Those few blips of time when my arm is in the air, a heavy jar of jam in my hand—those are the pivotal seconds.

Not unlike these right now.

He’s deciding. I can see it in the way his gray eyes go silver, how they narrow on Sterling, how his chest works a little harder as his breathing intensifies and the nervous shift on his feet. “You’re everything a woman like Juniper wants in a man. You’re the type of man she sleeps in a bed with for the rest of her life. The man who gives her a new last name and babies.” He swipes a hand over his mouth, laughing a little as he studies the floor for a moment. His face blazes with intensity as he looks back to Sterling.

Sterling presses his hand to his chest, and bumps rise up on my skin at his hoarse, vulnerable response. “I’m that guy? I don’t think so. I think you’re that guy.”

“He doesn’t think we want him,” I say to Dash, reaching up to stroke my hand along his cheek. Our eyes idle, and I try to impart courage and strength, I try to nudge him to speak the truth I know he holds in his heart. He swallows, the heavy slide of his Adam’s apple audible in the quiet space. “Tell him,” I whisper. “Be brave.”

Still by my side, he looks at Sterling, who remains pressed against the wall without my push.

“You’re not a buffer between me and her. In my mind, you’re an equal part of the equation,” he utters, voice raw and low.

I press my hand to his lower back, physically praising him for his admission.

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