Page 83 of Bleeding Hearts

“Really, Doomsday?” Theo sighs. “You had to catch feelings? You couldn’t just fuck him?”

“So, you, the man who fucks around more than anyone I know.” Kade looks directly at me. “The man who promised me that you and she were just friends. Is now fucking—sorry, in a relationship—with my little sister,” he says, calm but deadly, annoyance radiating off him.

“You married my best friend. Don’t be a hypocrite and try to pretend it’s not okay for me to date yours,” Demi chimes in, defending me.

“It’s okay, Dem.” I smile at her. “We were just friends. Or at least I thought we were or pretended we were. Who the fuck knows? But you know me, Kade. I wouldn’t start something with Demi, or anyone for that matter, unless I meant it. I’m in love with her.” The words leave my lips before I even realize it.

“Shit,” Kade says.

“You love me?” Demi squeaks from next to me, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“Yeah, baby. I do.” I reach down, intertwining my fingers with hers under the table.

“But you haven’t said it,” she says, her voice full of vulnerability.

“I didn’t think I needed to.” The answer is a half-truth. I haven’t said the words to Demi because I really did think if I showed it through actions, she’d see how much she means to me.

But also, saying the words I love you, and really meaning it in a romantic way is something I’ve never done. I wasn’t supposed to blurt it out this way.

I think part of me wanted it to be special when I did say it. Like I wanted when I kissed her for the first time to be special, and that didn’t go to plan either.

Then again, nothing with Demi ever goes as planned, yet when it does happen, it seems perfect in its own way.

“Well, of course you need to, you idiot,” she yells at me. “How the hell am I supposed to know you love me if you don’t tell me?”

“The same way that I know you love me, even if you haven’t said it. It’s the way you look at me when you think I’m not watching. The way you smile without even realizing every time I walk in the room. The way your eyes light up when I laugh. The way you see the absolute best in me even when it’s easy to see the worst.” I pause, reaching out and brushing the stray tear running down her cheek. “But if you need to hear it, I’ll tell you every second of every day. Demi Cornelia Rho—”

“Don’t ruin this by using my middle name,” she whisper-yells, cutting me off, and I laugh.

“Demi Rhodes, I love you.”

“I love you too, Asher Gray.” She smiles up at me, her words shining true in her eyes, and I think it may just be the best sight I’ve ever seen.

CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX

Demi

“Are you happy?” Kaden asks from where he stands next to me at the bar.

It’s a Tuesday night and it’s pretty quiet, leaving plenty of room up at the bar.

I look back over to the table where Asher is refereeing the argument between Lo and Theo. Theo insists that he won the bet on a technicality since I announced that we had sex before announcing that we were in a relationship.

Logan disagrees.

Asher is egging them both on.

I wish I could say I was surprised that they bet on Asher and me, but I’m not in the slightest. To be fair, I had a bet going with Theo about Kaden and Lo before they got together too. Safe to say I won.

Even focused on the argument, Asher looks over every couple minutes to check on me. I smile at him every time I catch him doing it, and he just shrugs, not mad at all about being caught.

I get what he meant now when he talked about showing me that he loves me in the little things he does. I didn’t see it before because I wasn’t looking, but now it’s obvious.

Asher Gray loves me. And I love him. So much it feels like my heart might burst.

“Yeah, I am.” I look back to Kaden. “I’m really fucking happy.” I smile at him.

“Then that’s all that matters.” He concedes, accepting that I’m with Asher. “But best friend or not, he hurts you, I’ll kill him, Demi.”

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