Page 37 of Thanksgiving With Dad's Best Friend

Lexi bows her head. “Well, I was kinda hoping that you might be my future. I know that choosing you is like condemning my relationship with my father, but I’ve known that all along. And now, the damage is done anyway. My Dad is a stubborn man, he’s not going to let me back in his life after the way I hurt him. I could chase him down and lose you both. I’m not willing to take that risk…not even for him.”

“Lexi” I growl, holding her face in my hands. She leans in to kiss my lips for a long time. Her hands grapple at the back of my neck, pulling me in. The kiss is full of desperation and trust and passion, it’s her way of telling me she’s staying right here with me. She’s not planning on going anywhere. When we pull apart, she looks me in the eyes and I can’t help thinking that she’s never looked more beautiful.

“We have to build something together now,” she whispers to me. “We have to make sure that this wasn’t for nothing…I want you, Flynn. Please promise me you’re not going to leave me.”

“I’ll never leave you,” I growl, my hands rubbing her thighs as we sit with our foreheads leant against each other. “You’re mine…you’ll always be mine.”

Lexi

Slowly, the pain numbs a little. It’s been two days since my father walked out. Today was the day we were due to go home, and I still don’t know if I’ve got the courage to leave this bubble that I’ve been living in with Flynn. I wake beside him and feel a rush of warmth inside me. The past few days have been so strange. Despite the pain of losing my father, we’ve managed to make the most of our time together. We’ve had sex more times than I can count, varying between slow, sweet love-making sessions to all-out fucking. We’ve been back to the market to buy more pecan pie. We’ve watched seasonal movies and snuggled on the sofa, but we’ve also been on long drives together where we talk for hours. We haven’t wasted a second of our time together, and I’m glad of it.

But now that it’s almost time to go, I find myself getting worried. If I leave this place, will he slowly come to the realization that I’m not worth it? Will he suddenly decide that he’s done with me because I’m too young, or I cause too much trouble in his life, or I’m just not the girl he thought I was?

The thought terrifies me. He’s everything I’ve ever wanted. He shares my sense of humor. He makes my body tremble when we have sex. He’s protective and smart and handsome and talented. He wants to protect me and make me his and spend all of his time with me. What more could I want from a man?

But what can I offer him? He could find someone more experienced in the bedroom. He could find a woman of his own age who wants all of the same things that he craves. He could get any woman he wants…he could date a supermodel, or an actress as sexy and famous as he is. He might start to tire of my shyness and the drama that I’ve brought to his life. I can’t be certain of anything when I’m with him because I truly believe I’m not worth his time.

When he stirs next to me, my heart aches. Is this the last time I’ll get to wake up next to him? I told him that I don’t want to let what we have go, but what if he’s happy just to let this end the moment I leave? I have to go back and finish my studies…he might not want to wait around for me.

I guess I’ll just have to find out.

He wakes up and pulls me close to him, unable to sense the tension in my shoulders and the fear in my heart, he kisses the back of my neck gently.

“What do you want to do today, baby?” he asks me. “We’ve got some time before I drive you home.”

My heart aches. I don’t know how to tell him that my home is here with him. I don’t want to scare him off with my intense feelings. Sure, everything we’ve shared has been intense, but in my head, I’m planning a life with him. It’s too soon, at least in his eyes, it probably is. I’d give myself entirely to him now if he wanted, but I have to try and hold back and play it cool.

“I don’t know,” I say instead of declaring my undying love for him. “We could go and see a movie? I’ve always thought movie dates are kinda romantic.”

“Me too,” he says, allowing his hand to venture between my legs. “And who knows what goes on in the dark of the theater…”

---