Page 52 of Someday

I will.

Love you, Lo.

Marlow

I love you.

My charger is in my backpack, and I plug it in behind the nightstand and crawl into bed. Burrowing under the covers, I grin up at the ceiling. I’m sure I’m too wired to fall asleep, but the bed is so comfy, I’m out within minutes and sleep through the night.

CHAPTERTWENTY

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

THEO

By the time morning rolls around, I regret the way I left things with Sofie last night. Hell, I regretted it the minute I walked away from her, but her question about whether we’d have kids or not and thinking about what could have been…I spiraled into fight-or-flight mode.

Now I just feel stupid.

She’s back.

This is exactly what I’ve wanted all these years.

She’s back and she has a valid reason for leaving.

Maybe not what I wish she’d chosen to do, but who the fuck am I to judge her for leaving me behind when she was dealing with that shit of a father?

I’ll always wish she’d told me back then and that I could’ve done something to keep it from happening, but she’s here now. Why would I spend one more minute shutting her out when she’s finally opened up to me?

She might break my heart again, but it’s been in pieces since the day she left. What’s another crack?

And…I think it’s possible her heart was broken even more than mine.

There’s so much she still hasn’t told me about what happened to her.

But I know I cannot contribute to making her life painful for another second. From here on out, I’m going to do my damnedest to put my feelings aside and not be a jackass.

I take a quick shower and let Fred out. I don’t have to be at the Doherty farm until ten, and unless I get an emergency call before then, there’s time to make breakfast. Coffee’s brewing, fruit is rinsed and colorful in a bowl, and the pancake batter is ready to be poured on the griddle when Sofie comes out.

Her hair is a whirlwind of waves. My very own red tempest. When she pushes her hair back, my eyes drift down to her tank top and short shorts, her nipples and long legs taunting me as she yawns and stumbles to the coffeepot.

“You’ve given me two of the best nights’ sleep I’ve had in so long. Thank you.” Her voice is a husky rasp, and if I wasn’t already harder than a metal pipe over her tits and legs, her voice and the way she’s smiling at me right now would’ve done it.

I smile back at her and her shoulders loosen, her smile softens, and I curse myself for putting that strain on her to begin with.

No more.

“I’m glad you slept. You were up so late the night before last though—if the past two nights are the best you’ve had, you need to sleep over every night.”

Her cheeks lift, her dimple deepening as she looks up at me.

“You got time for breakfast?” I ask.

“Aunt Hilary texted last night to say they’d feed the horses this morning…and tonight too.” She laughs. “They’re gonna be so disappointed when they find out the truth.”

“Let’s not disappoint them then,” I say lightly.

Her eyes widen and I pour the batter onto the griddle like I didn’t just say what I did.

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