Page 55 of Fierce-Hyde

“Either of them,” he said. “Remember. You had two.”

She laughed. “I did. What is wrong with me, Hyde?”

“Nothing,” he said, running his finger down her cheek. “I think you’re just really hard on yourself and I’m not sure why. But maybe you need to stop doing that.”

“You’re just as hard on yourself, but this time you weren’t.”

“I am, and I wasn’t this time.”

“Why?”

“Because I see something here and it’s what I told you before. I don’t want regrets and that means making you talk to me and find out the root of your problems.”

“There aren’t enough hours left in the night to get to the root of my problems.”

“I don’t think you have as many as you think,” he said. He kissed her on the forehead one more time and hugged her. “I think you just don’t cut yourself any slack and you’re afraid to let someone in.”

“And you want to get in?” she asked.

“I think I already am and I’m not talking about sex.”

17

EMOTIONAL CLIFF

The last thing Tori thought she’d do was spend the night.

But here she was in Hyde’s bed, opening her eyes and staring at the ceiling with a hot cocky guy she’d never in a million years thought she’d spend time with that was breathing softly next to her.

What had she done?

Then she had to fight back the groan over that thoughtagain.

She’d pissed Hyde off.

Insulted him too.

He had every right to feel the way he had.

And he talked her off her emotional cliff.

No one had done that in her life and she was stunned he was the one to do it.

“Are you going to talk to me or lie there trying to pray you can vanish without me knowing?”

She should have figured he’d be awake.

She turned her head and looked at him.

His blue eyes almost saw into her soul.

Talk about scary!

“Vanishing is better than the walk of shame.”

There was a pause while he continued to look at her. “You’re going to piss me off if I have to calm you down again today.”

She let out a sigh. “Sorry,” she said. “Wrong choice of words. I meant it as a joke.”

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