Page 74 of Overtime Goal
His smile was everything. “I know you were kidding, babe. We don’t need to walk on eggshells.” He flipped through the book until he found the right page. “This is by Yeats. He was an Irish poet.”
“I think I’ve heard of him. Let me have it, big guy.”
He gave me a long look. “Oh, I will. Poetry first, then back to bed.”
When he started reading, I closed my eyes. I wasn’t good at understanding poetry, but the way Logan read it brought the words to life.
Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
It took me a moment to open my eyes and reach for his hand.
“Wow,” he said softly. “You were listening.”
My throat locked up because I was about to cry. “Fuck, Logan. That was so damn beautiful.”
He pinned me with a fierce, penetrating gaze. “I don’t have any fancy cloths, Ade, but this chance with you feels like the dream I never thought I’d get.”
I nodded. “For me too. I won’t stomp on your dreams. Never.”
“And I won’t walk on yours. Thank you for trusting me with your heart.”
“Always.” I lifted his hand to my face, pressed it against my cheek, and then kissed it.
We didn’t say much as we finished breakfast, but a question burned in my mind. If I didn’t ask then, I was sure it would come out at the worst possible time. “Logan? I need to ask something.”
“Go for it.”
“Try not to read into it, okay? It’s only a question.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Ask then. Now I’m getting nervous.”
“Don’t. It’s…” I took a moment to breathe. “Why did you even consider doing anything with Quinn?”
“Who says I did? We had drinks.”
“I asked you not to read into it, but please be honest.” I locked eyes with him and chose my words carefully. “Yesterday, I asked when I’d see you again, and you said you didn’t know. You knew I was asking if you’d be gone all night. Then I found you, and Quinn seemed surprised when you were leaving with me instead of him.”
I leaned in, and my voice was rougher. “When we were getting close, you told me how he tore you apart. It was still fresh, and I saw what he did to you. I’d like to think I helped you through it.”
Logan glanced away, then met my eyes again. “You were amazing. It would’ve been a hell of a lot harder without you there. Honestly, I don’t know what I was thinking about Quinn these last couple of days. I wasn’t sure where we stood, and I didn’t know you loved me. I wanted a distraction. But if it helps, I’d pretty much decided not to go with him when you showed up.”
It made sense. I’d been there myself, making dumb choices to get through things. “I get it. And I’m sorry it took me so long to come around.”
“Don’t be…”
