Page 65 of Beautiful Thing

“What…?”That’s not what I was expecting her to say. I don’t think I heard her right.

She lets out a sound of annoyance. “One minute you’re buying diapers and car seats. And you’re rescuing me from spiders and from my asshole ex. But then the next minute, you’re behaving as if I’ve got the cooties and you need to stay the hell away from me. All of it is confusing. It’s giving me whiplash.”

I rub the back of my neck, feeling like an idiot. “I’m not trying to confuse you.”

“But you are! You are confusing me. And when you do nice things for me, I keep forgetting that you’re only nice to me because I’m your sister’s pathetic best friend and that you just feel sorry for me.”She pauses, yanking at the roots of her thick brunette hair. “And this fake relationship isn’t helping matters. You’re really good at pretending you like me.Reallygood,” she adds in a whisper. “I keep thinking that you might actually be attracted to me, but then—”

“I am, dammit!” I blurt out, no longer able to bury the truth. “I am so fucking attracted to you, Layla. I’m losing my mind trying to keep it under control.”

She stares at me for a long moment while my words echo in the silent kitchen. It’s looking like I’ve only confused her more.

She crinkles up her nose. “So then, what the hell is your problem with me?!”

“There is no problem,” I lie.

She laughs darkly, rolling her pretty brown eyes. “Come on. I’ve tried kissing you twice now. The first time, you literally picked me up and tucked me into bed like a stupid child. And the second time—well—you should remember that one.” Her cheeks turn violently red and her voice drops to an embarrassed whisper. “I was seconds away from coming on your fingers. I was practically begging you. And you rejected me. Are you fucking kidding me, Archer Brighton? I’m humiliated. I feel like such a fool.”

My skin goes tingly and warm at the mere reminder of the intimate moment we shared right here in this kitchen just a few nights ago. But now’s not the time to get all hot and bothered over the memory replaying in my head. Now is the time to fix this.

Layla has completely misinterpreted my actions. But that’s my fault. I haven’t exactly been forthcoming about my feelings for her. Now, more than anything, I want her to understand why I pulled back the way that I did.

I step forward, cupping her cheeks in my hands. I wipe away another tear that’s dripped down to her jaw.“You’ve got it all wrong, Layla.”

“Oh, please.”

I shake my head, done with the games. “For years now, it’s been killing me—fucking killing me—trying to stay away from you. I haven’t ever kissed you because…because…”

“Because what?” she insists quietly.

I try to say the words but I can’t bring myself to get them out. I’ve never been great with this stuff. The ghosts of my failed relationships have got me in a chokehold. I opened myself up in the past and I was the one left broken each and every time.

I pride myself on being a strong man. But I don’t know if I’m strong enough to endure romantic disappointment again.

But Layla is no longer letting me off the hook. “I’m tired of being confused. I’m tired of not knowing where things stand. I need us both to lay everything out on the table even if it means risking my pride. Once and for all, tell me what’s going on between us, Archer. Fake-dating thing aside, am I just imagining that something real is happening here?”

I close my eyes momentarily, trying to figure out how to say this. An image of Layla’s rat bastard ex-boyfriend comes to mind and the words just spill out of my mouth. “I’m a possessive man, Belle. I’ve never kissed you because I know that one taste of you would never be enough. I know that if I kiss you, I’ll need you to be mine. If I kiss you, if I claim you…and then you go back to him…and he hurts you again, I will have his blood on my fucking hands,” I grind out.

Layla’s eyebrows knit together at the gravity of my words. She bites down on her quivering lip as she leans her cheek into my palm like an affection-starved kitten.

I step even closer and the delicate scent of her fruity shampoo rises up all around me. Allowing my fingers to weave into her luscious hair, I revel in the way the silky strands feel to the touch.

“I think you should know by now, I’m not the kind of guy who fucks around. I don’t do one-night stands. I don’t do casual flings. I don’t do that wishy-washy shit.”

My fingers clutch a messy fistful of her hair and I gently tug her head back. My mouth waters when goosebumps sprout along the column of her throat.

“A kiss means something to me.” With my free hand, I trace a fingertip along her rosy mouth. Her chest rises and falls with ragged breaths. “Once I kiss these lips, you’re mine, Layla. There’s no going back. So if you want to get something started between us, you need to make sure that you’re ready for the real deal.”

Then, I release her, quickly turning to walk away before I do something stupid.

Like make the decisionforher.

28

LAYLA

Nolan calls out to me from the far end of his cluttered hallway. “You think you’ll need this?”

The vintage crib that he and Archer are carrying through the chaotic mess here at his house instantly catches my attention. “Oh my gosh. A crib? Yes! Yes! Don’t get me wrong—I love cuddling with my son. But since I moved in with your brother, I spend half of every night clinging to the edge of the mattress to save my life.”

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