Page 42 of Thanks for the Love
“I’m dead serious.”
He puts his glass down. “Well, I hope she means it because I really enjoy spending time with you.”
My heart starts to race.
“Why don’t we go sit down,” he suggests.
He takes my hand and leads me to the couch. We sit next to each other, and he stretches his arm along the top of the couch behind me. Having him close to me feels so good.
“I was actually wondering if part of the reason you stepped back was because of Lila.”
Ugh. I knew this was going to come up, and I’m determined to be honest with him.
His eyes lock on mine as he waits for me to say something.
“Lila had nothing to do with it.” I clear my throat as I prepare to tell him everything.
“When I moved here my plan was to put everything I had into focusing on my career. I never expected to meet you and have a connection so quickly,” I say, twisting my fingers.
“Neither did I,” he says softly. “The truth is that the second you fell out of the hammock, I was hooked.”
Hooked?I definitely didn’t expect him to say that.
“I just don’t know if I’m ready to open my heart again—I’m scared.”
He squeezes my hand. “So am I. In fact, there’s something I want to share with you.”
My heart begins to beat faster. I wonder if this is what Danielle was talking about.
“After my mom passed away, I bounced from one relationship to another until I met my ex-girlfriend. We were together almost a year, and I finally thought I was ready to settle down.” He rubs the back of his neck nervously. “We talked about marriage a lot. And then one day out of the blue, I woke up in a panic, and I ended our relationship that day.”
He gets a pained look on his face. “Naturally she took it hard, but I couldn’t commit when I wasn’t in the right state of mind.”
It’s obvious that Theo carries a lot of regret for hurting his ex-girlfriend.
“At least you didn’t sleep with her best friend,” I point out.
“Not a chance. I’d never do something like that,” he assures me. “Anyway, the reason I’m telling you this is because I want to be honest. I was nervous about it because you’ve dealt with more than your share of dishonesty.”
Theo pushes my hair behind my ear, and his touch sends tingles through my body. I’m still afraid of getting hurt again, but I think I’m more afraid of walking away from the feeling I have sitting here with him.
“What are you thinking about?” he asks a few seconds later.
I look him directly in the eyes. “Honestly, I was thinking about how much I love being here with you, and I was remembering the morning you made me breakfast.”
He grins. “I’ve thought about that morning a lot too and …”
“And what?”
“And I hope we’ll be watching a lot more Miami sunrises together. How does that sound?”
My heart practically beats out of my chest.
“I think it sounds perfect.”
He doesn’t waste any time gently taking my face in his hands and kissing me. His kiss is slow and meaningful, and I allow myself to savor every second of it. I know this is the first of many more evenings together, and I’m okay with that. I’m determined more than ever to embrace every aspect of life here in Miami and with Theo.
A few hours later, Theo and I walk hand in hand back to my house.
