Page 88 of Endgame

Dakota wastes no time moving forward, breaking the silence with a question I knew we would discuss eventually.

“Have you ever been in love?”

I’m not thrown off by her question per se, but I am a little shocked at how quickly she’s opening herself up to me.

I throw my left arm over her shoulder and feel her sink into me, legs crossed out in front. She’s gazing into my eyes with those round hazel eyes, waiting for my response.

“I haven’t. Not for the sake of trying. There’s never been anyone I wanted to chance the possibility of heartbreak with.”

Her face falls slightly, “Or the possibility of maddening love.”

Yes.

“Is that what you want, Dakota? Maddening love.”

It takes her a moment to gather her thoughts before she speaks up, “I think so. If you would have asked me six months ago, my answer would have been absolutely not. But I feel lighter now. Like life doesn’t hurt so badly. I know my loneliness came from the loss of my parents, but now I don’t see things so black and white. I don’t think the pain will ever really go away, but I feel hopeful I’ll find my person—despite the heaviness of losing them. I have to let myself feel it, ya know?”

I do. More than you can imagine.

She’s so damn strong, and it makes me deliriously happy to see her finally embracing it.

“I do. I’m so proud of you, Dakota. The moment you began seeing yourself less like a project and more like a woman capable of loving someone, I witnessed youliving.”

Her eyes shine with unshed tears. “Thank you for saying that. So, no girlfriends for you? Not even in high school or college?”

A light chuckle escapes me. “I did have one girlfriend in college, but love was never there. We fucked, and that was it. We mostly used each other for stress relief. She was working toward law school, and I was barreling deep into baseball, trying to make it to the Major Leagues. My parents weren't her biggest fans.”

I can laugh at it now, but Paige and I were not compatible in the slightest. I think I always knew that. It felt good to have human touch again—the touch of a beautiful womandistracting me from the stress in my life. Maybe it wasn’t the best way to handle it, but it worked in the end, and no one was hurt.

She doesn’t look bothered at the thought of me fucking someone else in the slightest. It’s almost like she can relate from experience. Her maturity continues to stagger me.

Dakota is mynow—the past means very little.

She giggles, playing with the pocket of her sweats. “Why didn’t they like her? Your parents are so sweet.”

Somehow, I forget she knows them—her being Navy’s best friend.

“Probably because I never wanted to introduce them to her. There was no future with Paige; I knew it, and she did too. I think deep down they wanted to see me with someone who saw what they did in me. Foster life sucked, and it screwed with my head for a long time. My parents saw the ramifications of that firsthand. I promised myself I wouldn’t let them worry about me. It turns out me not having anyone worries them the most.”

Her body language shows me she’s in tune with my every word. I’ll always love her attention. It’s like she can see into my fucking soul; it’s exhilarating.

“I can understand that. I can’t imagine how hard that must have been for you to adapt from such extreme circumstances and for them to see the pain it caused you. They must be so proud of you now.”

I can tell it’s difficult for her to express the love of another parent to their child, even though it's me. Despite that, her intentional compassion draws me to her. I pull her body in snugly, cradling her in my embrace. She breathes in a heavy sigh and lets herself settle in this moment.

There’s no denying the sexual chemistry we share, but the emotional connection is what I long for from her. When sheopens herself up and lets me in enough to see the scars she tries so hard to hide, I feel like the luckiest man in the world.

She feels like mine in every sense of the word.

I speak without thinking, “I want you to meet them as my girlfriend.”

Time stands still.Please don’t retreat.

They know her as Navy’s best friend, and I love that for them, but I want them to see her as my girlfriend.

“What? Do they know about us? But we just started seeing each other in that way, Cal. You don’t think it’s too soon?”

She’s not wrong. Even so, I knew she was exceptional from the second I witnessed her breakdown in that apartment months ago. The last few months have only confirmed that.

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