Page 147 of Need You to Choose Me

“I’d be offended if you didn’t.”

He lets go. “You stood up for her after those photos of you two leaked. That’s the kind of person she needs in her life.”

I’m still pissed at Hoffman for letting her get shit-talked in the comments of his post, and I hope Henderson gave him hell for it. “I’ll never put her in the position to be ridiculed. Maybe you should tell your buddy that next time he tries to get the girl.”

He huffs. “I’m starting to realize he never had her to begin with.”

I can’t help but smirk. “No. He didn’t.”

He leans against the door again, crossing one ankle over the other. “Is that all you had to say?”

I grab my phone from where I’d set it on the desk and slide it into my back pocket. “I said what I needed to. Maybe you can pass along a message to your father while you’re at it.”

His brows go up. “My dad?”

“He’s been reaching out to Olive to apologize for how he’s treated her,” I tell him, which seems to be a surprise to him. I guess she didn’t share that in her many unanswered messages to him. “But she isn’t interested. At least not right now. He doesn’t seem to understand that he needs to make up for all the times he let her down.”

Sebastian slowly nods. “He’s never been the smartest man.”

I’m inclined to agree. “If you don’t get him off her back, I’ll find his address and show up to his place next. And something tells me he wouldn’t like that too much.”

“Heisa Rangers fan.”

“Man has poor taste,” I offer easily.

Sebastian has the decency to chuckle. “I’ll talk to him. It’s overdue. I hoped Olive would shut him out a long time ago, but she always felt obligated to see him.”

I can understand that. “We don’t like the idea of losing family. But sometimes we need to prioritize peace aboveanything else. That’s what I hope to bring her. It’s not going to be easy, but I’ll be damned if I give up trying.”

My biggest competitor since I joined the Lindon U hockey team sizes me up. “Olive has never truly needed anybody before. She either never let me help her or fought like hell when I did. But she told me about the internship in one of the messages she left. Shelet youhelp her.”

That has my lips curling into an easy smile.

Because she did.

“She trusts you too,” he adds quietly.

And those words…damn they do something to me.

He takes a deep breath and pushes off the door, grabbing the handle to leave. He pauses only for a second before saying, “Guess she’s okay with needing you.”

Then he walks out.

Leaving me realizing what a great feeling that is. Not only to be loved, but to be needed. To be trusted. To have someone to rely on instead of doing everything alone.

Olivechoseme.

Olive choseme.

I smile down at the floor.

Olive. Chose. Me.

And I’ll never stop choosing her.

EPILOGUE

Olive

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