Page 79 of Home Field Advantage
I swallow, not even sure how to process that.
It’s not like it’s new information for me. IknowDallas Westbrook is different.
So much different.
“If I were like other guys, I would have kissed you by now. I would have had you in your bed and on your back ten minutes ago, forgetting your own name.”
“Dallas,” I whisper, letting my eyes flutter closed.
There’s so much more I want to say, but all my words stay stuck in my throat.
I want him to kiss me.
I want to feel his body on top of me.
I want things I’ve never felt before, and only from him.
Just as I’m about to admit any of that to him, the lights turn on, and I hear the heater start running again. We both look around before we turn back to one another. The air between us is thick. There’s so much I want to say, and so many unspoken words linger on his tongue. I can tell by the way his eyes darken with each passing second.
“I should go see if everything is up and running again at my place. I had a load of laundry in the washer when the power cut out,” he says before leaning down, his lips dangerously close to my skin. “And before I finally dare to act on everything I just said I would do.”
I smile, thinking about all of it.
The feeling of his lips on mine, and him taking me to my room.
I’m not ready for any of it.
But I want to be. I want to lose everything to this man in front of me.
He lets his lips graze my cheek as he pulls away, not fully pressing them to my skin, but it’s enough to make my body shiver and my heart pound in my chest.
“I’ll see you soon, Poppy.”
And as he walks toward the door, he gives me one more passing glance and a wink before closing the door behind him. As it clicks shut, silence engulfs the room. For once, it’s not heavy or crushes me like a ton of bricks.
My thoughts aren’t spiraling.
There are no voices in my head telling me I’m not enough.
Dallas didn’t try to fix me. He didn’t show me pity. He just saw me for me. I didn’t realize how loud the war zone in my head had been until he quieted everything.
For the first time in a long time, I don’t feel like I’m drowning.
I’m just breathing.
And it has everything to do with Dallas Westbrook.
CHAPTER 20
AM I JEALOUS NOW?
Poppy
Walking into Seven Stools tonight feels different.
There’s a lightness in me after the conversation with Dallas earlier today.
I didn’t want him to leave, but his leaving is exactly what I needed to understand the power behind his words.
