AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Leo’s gaze was severe, and I realized his hand was sweating over mine. Pain was evident in his features. Embarrassment washed over me.
“I’m sorry, I know that’s a lot to dump on you . . .”
Leo pulled me to him, crushing me into a firm embrace against his warm chest. I buried my face into his neck, breathing in the smell of his soap, feeling his hands soothe against my back, along my arms, until the shakiness in my limbs began to subside. “I’m so sorry that you had to endure something like that, Mara. I . . .” He inhaled deeply. “You deserve so much better.”
I let out a quiet laugh. “I sort of figured I was done with love—at least for a really long time. And I definitely needed a break from men until I could sort through my fears and heal from some of my internal wounds. I . . . I’ve known I’m bisexual since high school, but after Seth I kind of thought I might be done with men for good. I haven’t been interested in any man in years . . . not until you walked into Rudy’s that night.”
He tilted my face off of his chest until I was looking at the question shining from his eyes. “I was . . . the first? Since?”
I nodded. “Yeah. I had a brief fling with another ex after—it was more of a comfort hookup than anything. But you’re the first new man I’ve slept with since Seth.”
“God Mara, I hope I didn’t push you?—”
“No, you didn’t.” I pressed a hand to his cheek. “It was the first time I didn’t feel scared, the first time I felt . . . hopeful. I wanted you that night, Leo. You were exactly what I needed.”
He let out a deep exhale and his shoulders relaxed. “You were exactly what I needed, too. And, I know we only have a few days left,” he said, his tone growing somber, “but if there’s anything I can do to help you heal . . . if you can use me in any capacity, Mara, please do.”
The pads of his fingers pressed divots against my skin, and hunger curled in my stomach. He was looking at me with so much tenderness and care that it knocked the breath right out of my lungs. But his words sprang wild around my mind.
“Leo,” I murmured, sliding my open palm across his jaw. “No. That’s not what this is . . . this isn’t about using you. I’m choosing you, choosing to let you in. To be vulnerable with you. And if I didn’t make it clear last night, I’ve changed my mind about what happens after the week is over. I . . . I don’t want you to go anywhere. I want to see this through . . . with you. I said I’m yours and . . . I meant it.”
His eyes searched mine, the hope in them shining like a falling star. “You did?”
“Yeah.” I nodded firmly. “I did. Please stay.” I was no longer frightened. No longer aching to fill the hole in my heart, because it was undoubtedly shrinking by the second—filling with laughter and joy and what felt like a new beginning with him. “No disappearing acts necessary. Please don’t go back to New York.”
His returning smile was boyish, but I could still see the shadows haunting his eyes. “Come here,” he said, pulling me closer and shifting our bodies so that I was pinned between him and the soft mattress, his legs still caging around my own. “You are brilliant,” he murmured before kissing my cheek. “You are kind and generous,” he continued, pressing his warm lips to the other side of my face. And then he looked down at me with such genuine adoration, I felt everything in me shatter apart. “You are worthy of love and respect, Mara.”
I tried to stop the tears from falling, but it was no use. “Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I never met Seth—what that alternate-universe-version of myself might look like. Is she braver? Stronger? Is she happier because she was never hurt?” I bit my lip, feeling a single tear trickle down my temple. “I’ve fought for where I’m at. And don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful for everything I’ve built for myself—but I’m also really fucking angry that I had to go through it in the first place. That I had to claw my way back from the depths of hell all because I let some stupid man hurt me. Because I let him keep hurting me.”
“Mara.” Leo’s voice was low. He reached his hand up, gently wiping away the next tear that escaped from my eye. “You can dream up that reality all you want. There’s nothing wrong with being angry for being hurt, or for wishing it never happened. But . . . I’d like to tell you what I see when I look at you, if that’s all right?”
He was looking at me like he needed to say whatever came next. I fastened my gaze on his mouth as I nodded.
“You are full of so much fire, so much tenacity that it’s nearly blinding. When I look at you, Mara, I see the bravery and strength that you say you yearn for—you already have it. It’s in the way you fight for women to feel safe at Larkspur, in the way you fight for yourself and your team there. I see how open you’ve let yourself become around me, and I don’t take that gift lightly because I can’t imagine how hard it is to extend that kind of trust after what you’ve been through.
“You’re a dragon, Mara. You show your teeth and breathe your fire when you need to. But it’s not the sum of who you are.” He swiped his thumb across my jaw, and I leaned my face into his palm. “You’re also the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my entire life. I would find you in any universe, in any reality. I would see you for the devastatingly perfect, sweet woman that you are. And I would do everything in my power to make you mine.”
“Leo,” I breathed.
“Look at you, my fire-breathing girl.” His bright blue eyes were hazy with lust. “Now, open your legs for me, sweetheart.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“I haven’t seen you in days!” Nora squealed, dropping her polishing cloth over the bar top and wrapping her arms around me. It was true—I hadn’t seen her since Monday night when we’d last worked together. We normally worked together Wednesdays, but Sam had covered my shift so I could attend the dinner from hell.
“I know, it’s been a crazy week. How have you been?”
Nora pulled back, her brown eyes shining in the glow of the neon lights. “So good—Marisela and I almost have our menu nailed down! We still have so much to do, but most of it is just licensing and city approvals at this point. I think we might be open before the holidays!”
“That’s amazing, Nor!” I pulled her in for another squeeze, and her tall frame folded over mine. “Although, I hate to ask what that means for Larkspur.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere—not for a while, at least.”
Thank god.
My phone chimed with a new text, and I untucked myself from Nora to pull it out of my belt bag. Leo’s name was written across the screen. “Sorry, Nora, I need to get this. But let’s catch up later, okay?” Sam opened tonight, so he would be the first cut once things began to slow down. Which meant Nora and I would have time to talk more when we closed up.
She nodded. “Sounds good!”
