Page 80 of His Heart

Part III

The whispers of my heart

grow

until they are

more than a breath of air

sound

fury

passion

things I did not know

until I found you

~B

Brooke

Olivia knockedon the door while I tried to hide behind her. Charlie answered, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans.

His eyebrows lifted and his lips turned up in a smile. “Hi. I guess you’re looking for Seb?”

“Oh my god, you’re huge too,” Olivia said, her voice awed.

“Uh, yeah. I guess so?” He held out a hand. “I’m Charlie.”

“Sorry.” Olivia took his hand. “I’m Olivia. You have really beautiful eyes. And I obviously have no filter right now.”

Charlie grinned. “That’s okay. It’s nice to meet you.”

They kept shaking hands, their eyes locked, for a lot longer than necessary. I had a feeling neither of them remembered I was there.

Sebastian came down the hallway and I peered at him from behind Olivia. He wore a pair of gray sweats and his sleeveless shirt displayed his muscular arms in all their glory. His hair was carelessly unkempt, his beard a little thicker than usual. My heart felt like it was going to beat right out of my chest and my tummy swirled. Tingles of emotion bubbled up from deep inside, feelings long buried trying to make their way to the surface.

“Oh, hi,” Olivia said, taking her hand back from Charlie.

“Did you talk to her?” Sebastian asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “She’s okay, but I think maybe you should just talk to her.”

She stepped aside and I found myself under the intense gaze of those gorgeous green and brown eyes. Sebastian stared at me, his face unreadable.

Charlie glanced behind him, then at me. “So, Olivia, you must be hungry after your flight. Want to grab some dinner with me?”

“I’d love to,” Olivia said. “I’ll be back in a little bit, okay, Brooke?”

I nodded, my eyes never leaving Sebastian.

Charlie grabbed his keys, then walked Olivia out to the driveway. I stepped inside and closed the door as Charlie’s truck roared to life.

I decided to take a page from Olivia’s book, and get straight to the point.

“Sebastian, I’m so sorry. I know telling you that I’m a mess is a stupid excuse. There’s no excuse for what I did. But I am a mess, and I’m sorry for that. I’m sorry I put myself in danger, and that you had to rescue me. But more than anything, I’m so sorry I hurt you.”

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