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“Trust me, Mara?—”
“No, Leo,” I interrupted, voice firmer. “This is . . . this is incredibly kind, and generous. But you bought the bar, with real money. Your money. I’m prepared to buy it from you, or . . .” I realized I may not actually be ready to buy the whole thing at this point. “. . . or at least come up with some sort of payment plan. We can figure that part out.” His smile grew as I rushed out the words. “I don’t want the bar like this. And you just gave up your job . . . I meant it when I said I want to run things together. I could use some mentorship, and more than anything, I want you here, Leo. Not just with me, but here.”
Warm hands cupped my face. “I’ll give you anything you want, Mara. Whatever you’re comfortable with.”
“I want you,” I repeated. It was the only thing that mattered. At least for right now.
He looked down at me, emotion shining in his ocean blues. “When I first saw you, I nearly went to my knees for you, Mara. Right in the middle of that convenience store, like a damn fool. I wanted to give myself to you completely without even knowing your name. I wanted to slay dragons for you and shield you from the nasty shit that this world is full of. But you’ve proven you can slay your own dragons. You are as fierce and bright and fiery as them, all on your own, and you’ve made me braver just by being around you. Brave enough to finally choose myself, and what I want. Trust me, sweetheart—what I want is you.”
“Do you want a drink?” Leo asked. We’d just gotten home from a long Friday night shift—Nora caught us making out in the office when she came to tell me we needed a keg change, and I’d had a lot of explaining to do. And then the bar got busier than all hell, and I hadn’t had the chance to stop moving until we closed. It was a wild night, but the tips were worth it.
Georgie had been waiting with a note from Leo’s parents saying that they’d gone home to New York early—it seemed they’d finally understood that they couldn’t control their son any longer. I wondered if they’d be back to try again someday, or if this might be the end of their relationship with their son. I supposed it was impossible to know, but one thing was for damn sure—whatever happened, Leo and I would face it together.
I still held out hope that things might resolve themselves at some point, if Alaric and Christine could learn to respect him and give him the unconditional support that he deserved. But I also knew it would take a lot of change for anything like that to ever happen. For now, my body buzzed with the knowledge that they were gone, that our agreement was technically over—and I was still here.
That this was really only the beginning.
“No,” I said softly. Why drink when there were so many other things we could do? My eyes traced his Cupid’s bow, thinking about the shape it took around my breast, and I flushed.
Leo slid his hands into his pockets and watched me with a devilish grin. I tried to force more air into my body, tried to stop my mind from racing. “Then what do you want, Mara?”
My eagerness only grew when his eyes darkened to a deep hazy blue as I pulled off my hoodie. Like the swell of the ocean at night: deep and majestic and full of the best-kept secrets. His hunger was taking hold, fastening itself to my own. I threw him a wry grin. “Wanna watch The Outsiders?” I asked. I still technically hadn’t seen it.
Leo’s laugh boomed through the room with genuine sincerity. That mask of his had been discarded, and I hoped he never wore it again. He stepped forward, pulling me to him and nuzzling his mouth into my neck. “I think Marge was really on to something with that,” he said, his voice muffled against my skin.
I smiled. “I mean, you do look like a young Rob Lowe—” I was cut off by Leo’s mouth as it pressed against mine to catch the rest of my words on his tongue.
Dolly came racing into the living room from somewhere down the hallway, Swift close at her heels. Swift had taken to chasing Dolly around the apartment in the last few days, and Dolly was anything but pleased. Leo laughed again as I scooped her up—she’d been much more welcoming of my presence lately.
“Dolly Parton, are you being heckled again?” Leo asked her, leaning in and giving her chin a soft scratch.
My eyes shot wide. “Dolly Parton? That’s her name?” I could feel Dolly’s stare as she turned to look at me with those intense eyes, like I should have already known this.
Leo smiled. “Dolly Parton and Taylor Swift—two of the best female songwriters in existence,” he said proudly.
I shook my head in disbelief. “You just keep surprising me, don’t you?” I was so worried that he’d turn out to be another misogynistic boss when I learned he’d purchased Larkspur—even more so when he asked me to agree to be his fake girlfriend to appease his billionaire father—but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
He took the shit I threw at him head on, somehow knowing I desperately needed to let it out to save myself. He never judged me for it . . . he only continued to show up, to remind me that I wasn’t alone, that I had permission to fall apart too. That he would be there. And he found a way to render my weapons useless.
The four of us settled into the couch and as I looked around the living room, I realized that manifestations I’d held so closely to my heart the first time I was here were presenting themselves to me like a gift from the universe. I was ending a day of doing what I loved next to the man of my dreams in a penthouse that had begun to feel like a second home. We still had a long way to go in our respective healing journeys, but we’d made strides in the last week—both as individuals and together.
Later, when it was obvious that Leo and I wouldn’t be finishing the movie again due to roaming hands and whispered praises, we scampered down the hall into his bedroom, my hand held tightly in his. After taking a quick reprieve in the bathroom to brush my teeth and shower, I found Leo already in bed, waiting for me. His long body took up most of the space, and I couldn’t help the heat crawling up my neck at the sight of him.
“Mara,” he rasped in the dark. I didn’t think I would ever get tired of hearing my name from his mouth.
“Yes, Leo?” I answered, slinking closer to the bed.
He reached out for my hand, pulling me to him on the bed so that my legs straddled over his hips. Gently brushing a thumb across my cheek, he whispered, “I’m so happy you’re here.” I closed my eyes, soaking in the feeling of this, the feeling of him. He smiled. “There’s nothing in the world I want more than this, Mara,” he assured. “Nothing.”
His words moved through me like a soothing balm spreading over so many old and tired wounds. I wasn’t naive to think that those wounds didn’t still exist or that Leo alone would heal them, but I felt safe enough to try and that seemed like the hardest part. I bent down to press a kiss against his lips and couldn’t help the smile as I did.
Epilogue
Three Months Later
I was eager to take advantage of a sunrise run after a night off from the club in which we spent nearly the entire night curled up in bed together. Leo grumbled as we got dressed, doing his best to convince me to get back into bed with him, pleading that he would make it worth my while. Somehow I’d resisted, and as such was rewarded with the sight of him in jogging shorts.
My eyes helplessly zeroed in on the way the loose-fitting black fabric hung around his muscular thighs, my mouth immediately going dry. His legs were incredible, strong and thick with calves that could have their own zip code. I thought about how those legs had carried my weight numerous times, had supported him as he thrust into me against a wall . . . it was enough to leave me breathless.
