Page 120 of Sparking Sara

“They already said it’s okay,” he tells me. He holds out his phone. “Want to see?”

It dawns on me that the whole time we were packing, he wasn’t texting Nora; he was texting his sister.

I want to say yes. I want to say yes so badly. But I’m not sure I should.

Denver grabs my hand and pulls me down next to him. “Say yes.”

“What about Nora?” I ask. “I have a hard time believing she’d be okay with it. Did you ask her?”

“I’m not with Nora.”

My surprised eyes snap to his. “You’re not? Since when?”

“A few weeks now.”

A few weeks?I wonder why he never said anything. “When you and I … in the studio.”

He shakes his head. “I broke it off before then.”

“Why?”

Denver lets go of my hand and gets off the bed, pacing around the room. “I didn’t send those screenshots just for you,” he says nervously. “I selfishly did it for me, too.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean …” He runs his hands through his hair. “I mean I’m in love with you, Sara. I’ve been in love with you for months. I tried to deny it because you were engaged. I tried to stop myself from feeling that way by dating another woman. And I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m glad Oliver is a conniving back-stabbing prick. Because if he weren’t, you’d be over in London with him. I can’t tell you how relieved I was last night when I was listening to your conversation and found out you two hadn’t been together yet. Do you know how hard it’s been for me, thinking you’ve been in his bed all this time? And I’m not sure if this changes things. Maybe you won’t want to stay with me now. Maybe you don’t want me at all. But I’ve never felt a connection to another woman the way I feel it with you.” He stops pacing and sits on the chair in the corner. “I’m a rambling idiot. Say something.”

“I …” My mind is still trying to absorb everything he said.He’s not with Nora. He loves me. Me!“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“You’d been through so much. I didn’t think it was fair to put you in that position. And I didn’t want to stand in the way of your happiness.”

“My happiness?” I stand up, tears rolling down my cheeks. “Denver,youare my happiness.”

“I am?”

The way he’s looking at me, it’s like he’s just been told he won the lottery. He pushes himself up out of the chair and strides over to me, brushing a hair out of my eyes. Then he stares at me. He staresintome. And I tell him everything he needs to know without uttering any words at all.

“Sara,” he says, just before his lips collide with mine.

We’ve shared two kisses in the past few months. Stolen kisses. Forbidden kisses. But this one—this one is different. Because we’re free to be with each other. There is no guilt. No shame. No wondering what the other is thinking or feeling. This kiss is the answer to all the questions I’ve asked myself.

I knew I wanted him. Deep down, I knew I wanted him more than I’d ever wanted anything. And I thought maybe he wanted me, too. But we both had other commitments. There were other people to think about.

But now, as I stand here kissing him, I know what fools we’ve been. We denied our feelings for each other. We blindly went along with Oliver’s lies.

I push the thought of Oliver out of my head, not letting him steal another moment from me. I get lost in Denver’s arms as he kisses me until we’re both gasping for air. He pushes me back and we fall onto my bed. I can feel his erection pressing into me. I groan beneath him as his lips devour my neck, my collarbone, the bare skin above the V of my shirt. I want him so badly my body is humming with anticipation. I want him to rip my clothes off and make love to me.

But then I remember where we are.

I pull away. “Not here. Not where I laid next to him.”

Denver looks at the bed with disgust. “Right. Not here.” He rolls off me and props up on an elbow. “About the townhouse? What do you say? Will you stay with me until we get you settled somewhere else? No pressure. I don’t want you to do anything you aren’t comfortable with. I’ll sleep on the couch in the basement.”

I put a hand on his chest and then rest my head on it. Then I look up at him with sultry eyes. “Nobody is sleeping on the couch, Denver.”

A slow smile creeps up his face. “Really?”

I nod. “Really.”

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