Page 80 of When We Were More
“I don’t care what you tell him. Remind him it’s a holiday. And it’s a weekend. Hell, tell him his wife is being intolerable with her demands. Whatever you need to, but I’m not going. I have somewhere far more important I need to be.”
Then he ends the call. His eyes never leave mine.
“What did you do? Call her back and tell her to never mind. You can’t?—”
“I can do whatever I want. You’ve told me a million times that I’m not the boss of you—nor do I want to be, by the way—but Iamthe boss of my company and, more importantly, the boss of me. I need to be here, and I want to be here.”
“Henry, your business… What if you lose the contract?”
“Who cares? They’ve been horrible, and I don’t need the contract. I don’t need any of it. Not eventhe company, Matilda. I have more than enough money that we could never work another day and still live life however we want.”
I tense.
“Why are you saying ‘we’? You mean you and the kids, right?”
“I mean all of us. The kids, you, and me.”
I’m pretty sure my eyes almost bulge out of my head at his words. It’s one thing when I’m having confusing thoughts that I need to control. But if he’s having them, too, I can’t keep those in check.
He’s moved closer to me and lifts his hands to my face, cupping my cheeks. Nearly everything in me wants to relax and lean into his touch. Except for that one little part in the back of my head, shooting off warning flares.
“Henry, stop it.” The words come out in a whisper.
The pads of his thumbs caress my cheekbones. My eyes blur with unshed tears.
“I can’t, tiger. I won’t pressure you, but I’maskingyou to please sit here with me for a few more minutes and hear me out. Okay? If you don’t want to, then tell me and I’ll leave. I’ll hate it, but I’ll go.”
My brain is screaming at me to walk away, but this time, my heart is stronger. I stay. After a few seconds, he lowers his hands to hold mine and guides us to sit.
“When I met you, you drove me absolutely bonkers—in more ways than one. I had never seen a woman so gorgeous in my life. More importantly, you pulled me right in with all that sass, that fiercely independent streak. Most of all, though, it was your heart. The emotion that showed when you let your guard down.”
“Henry—”
“Hold on. Let me get this out. I liked you, Matilda. Even when you frustrated the hell out of me, I liked you. I still do. When the chemistry between us led to this friends with benefit situation, I thought I had it made. Hot sex with a gorgeous woman I enjoy talking to and hanging out with, but no strings attached.”
He pauses and wipes away a tear rolling down my cheek, never taking those piercing green eyes off mine.
“It was stupid of me to think that’s how things would stay because how could any man do all the things we’ve done, spend time with you, andnotfall in love?”
I gasp and pull back a few inches. Hurt flashes across his features. He can’t be saying he loves me.
“I thought I would be the exception. After all, I’m the man who was hellbent on not loving a woman because I didn’t want to put my heart at risk if I lost her. It was arrogant of me to think I had a say in the matter. I love you, Matilda. Iwantto love you. Ichooseto love you. You’ve made me desire something I swore I never would. And God, do I ever want it with you.”
“Henry…”
“Let me love you, tiger. You don’t have to love me back, but please, let me love you.”
His words fly at the walls I’ve erected around my heart, doing their best to knock it down. They make dents, for sure, but those walls are fortified, thick.
Henry pulls me to him, and I let him. He holds me for a few minutes, and we say nothing more. When I pull back, he lovingly holds my face in his hands.
This is it. It’s time to let it all go.
“Will you do that, Matilda? Will you let me love you?”
The vulnerability and hope in his eyes break my heart.
Now I have to break his.
