Page 27 of Married to Murder
“Then what is it?”
“It’s me.”
“I don’t understand.”
He kicked at a stone. “There’s just stuff about me that you don’t know.”
“Okay. So tell me.”
“No.” His voice was hard, and he stopped walking. “Maybe this whole thing is too much.”
My heart froze. “What?”
He swallowed. “Maybe this was a mistake.”
My pulse sped up, and I felt sick. “Seth, you can’t back out now.”
Chewing his lower lip, he looked nervous. “I like a simple, peaceful life. This feels like it’s getting complicated.”
“Well, life is complicated sometimes.”
He shook his head. “No. It doesn’t have to be.”
I could feel he was about to back out, and a strange panic settled in my gut. “Why do you think this is so complicated all of a sudden?”
He wouldn’t meet my gaze. “You don’t really know me, Tanner.” He wrinkled his brow. “The longer we know each other, the more you’ll probably want to know. It’s not wrong of you to want to know more about the man you’re sleeping with… but I don’t want to talk about the past. That’s how I keep my life uncomplicated.”
I studied his tense face. “Tell me what you want. I don’t need to know anything you don’t want to share with me.”
He flicked his suspicious gaze to mine. “Yeah, you say that now.”
“I mean it. I like the man I see in front of me. What do I care who you were? I like you now.”
A muscle clenched in his jaw, and his gaze glittered as he stared at me. There was fear and skepticism buried in the blue depths of his eyes. “People say shit. Then time goes by and they change their minds.”
I shook my head and instinctively moved closer. “No. I don’t want you to live with me so I can pry into your past. I want you around because I enjoy being with you. Trust me, that’s not like me either. But with you, I can see breakfast in bed and movie nights. It’s weird, to be honest, that I would want that.” I frowned. “But it has nothing to do with trying to control you or snoop. I just want to be around you. I want where we live to be ours. Not mine and not yours, but ours. Neutral territory.”
He blinked at me as if he wasn’t sure what to make of my statement. “Neutral sounds good.”
I smiled, feeling relieved he seemed less freaked-out. “I agree. But I want you happy too. If staying with me is too stressful for you, then I guess I need to suck it up and deal.”
He touched my arm softly, his fingers trailing slowly down to my wrist. “No. It’s not too stressful if you understand I don’t want to talk about the past.”
I leaned in and whispered, “What past?”
His lips twitched and he let out a rough breath. “You sure you still want to go through with this plan?” His thick lashes rested on his cheeks as if he was afraid to meet my gaze.
“Absolutely.” I put my finger under his chin and made him meet my gaze. “Now what do you say we go eat some delicious Mexican food and drink way too many margaritas?”
He smiled, relief etched into his face. “Sounds good to me.”
We started walking again, and my heart ached when he cautiously reached out and took my hand. I felt protective of Seth in a way I’d never felt about another man. It worried me because I could feel his hesitation in giving himself to me, and I was surprised I’d even want that. But scary or not, there was no denying Seth had wormed his way into my heart.
Chapter Nine
Seth
“How the hell did I let you talk me into this?” Tanner laughed, tugging at the straps around his upper body.
