Page 81 of Burning Love
“Oh. I forgot you were coming tonight.”
Her smile dropped. “Did you want me to leave?”
“No. It’s fine. I was looking for something to make for dinner. I got home about twenty minutes ago and just got out of the shower.”
Talia hadn’t seen him since Sunday. He’d been working with his father and getting home late each night, then was at the firehouse.
They’d planned this a few days ago that she’d bring dinner at seven. He’d even confirmed this morning.
“No. Sorry. It’s been a long day.” He smiled. It was extremely obvious that it was forced. “Now I don’t have to cook.”
This was the first she’d seen him this way. He was normally upbeat and joking. Not always, but not distracted.
“Everything okay? Anything you want to talk about?”
“No.”
He was getting plates down and put them on the island.
“No, it’s not okay or no, you don’t want to talk about it?”
“Both.”
Talia let out a sigh. She should leave. This was only reminding her that what they had wasn’t what she was hoping in her mind.
“I’ll leave and let you have some space.”
“Don’t go,” he rushed out. “I’m sorry. I really am. I’d like you to stay for the company.”
She frowned. She still wanted to leave but wouldn’t.
There was a vulnerability to him that she hadn’t seen before. She wouldn’t leave someone when they were down even if that meant it could hurt her.
She wouldn’t be selfish like that.
She opened the bag on top and pulled out the wings she’d picked up and put a few on the plate, then grabbed a slice of pizza.
They ate in silence for a minute.
She had sauce all over her hands and got up to get a napkin out of the pantry since the bin was empty.
She knew where everything was in his house now. Almost as if it were her own.
Crazy how it’d only been about a month and she felt so comfortable here.
“Do you want to just sit in silence as your form of company, or talk?”
“I’m being a dick, I know.”
“We are all entitled to a bad day. My family has a range of personalities. It’s nothing I haven’t handled or lived with before.”
She was the one forcing the smile now.
He reached his hand over. “I appreciate it. I’m so used to being alone.”
And he didn’t want to be, which meant this wasn’t something as simple as work not going well.
“Is everything okay with your family?”
