“I’ll walk with you,” he says.
“I have to pay,” I protest.
“No, you don’t,” Connor said, simply. “You’re getting free food here for the rest of your life if you want.”
I…what? He shifts both food bags to one arm as he pushes open the restaurant door and waits for me to exit. I step out into the cold night and shiver, shoving my hands into the pocket of my coat.
I can hear people singing Christmas carols somewhere down the street. There’s a group of people gathered around them, listening to the carolers. Connor gestures for me to cross the street so we don’t run into them.
“You don’t have to do this,” I say. “I can carry the bag myself.”
Being away from the restaurant is helping clear my head.
Connor glances at me through narrowed eyes. “I’m going to The Honeysuckle as well.”
Why is he going to The Honeysuckle?
“This isn’t going to fix anything, Connor. You can’t do one nice thing and expect everything to be better.”
His beautiful mouth lifts into a smirk.
“Baby girl, if I thought getting you back was going to be this easy, I wouldn’t try because it’d mean I don’t know you at all.”
His words cause me to trip over my own feet. Connor reaches out and wraps his arm around my waist, steadying me. My body is flush against his and for a second, I’m taken back to all those times he’d pulled me close and kissed me just because. He’d always say that. We’d be walking down the street, and he’d pull me close to kiss mejust becausewith this secretive smile on his face.
His face is so close to mine, the feel of his body so familiar. His eyes look brown right now, thickly lashed, his nose straight, lips soft and inviting. He hasn’t shaved in at least a week and there’s grey coming through his beard now. I always found that so hot.
There’s a part of me that hates me for wanting to give in and ease my body against his. It’s the part of me which enjoys going home to my parents’ apartment where I grew up and settling into my old, comfortable places. Places where I always know I’ll be safe.
I shove away from Connor. He’s not a safe space anymore.
“There’s no winning me back, Connor,” I grind out. “This isn’t a game.”
He stares back at me with conviction. “Never thought it was, baby girl.” His eyes flicker down my body in a slow perusal, my body flushes with heat. “And these aren’t the games I want to play with you.”
“Don’t call me that,” I say through gritted teeth. “Don’t look at me like that either. Have you ever considered that I might have a boyfriend, and I’ve moved on from a man who left me without a second thought?”
I always hated when he called me that nickname, even though I missed hearing it. Connor looks at me for a long moment, tilting his head. I shiver as the wind picks up, carrying with it the scent of nutmeg and cinnamon from the bakery nearby.
“Then tell me you have a boyfriend, hellion,” he says.
Ugh. I don’t have the patience to deal with him. I turn and start walking towards the Inn again, letting him trail behind me. I hated liars and I didn’t like lying so I’m not going to tell him that I’m seeing someone, not even to get him to back off. I’ll be gone in two weeks, regardless.
“That’s what I thought,” Connor says, coming up beside me. “For the record, even if you had a boyfriend, I would do everything in my power to get you back because I know you belong with me.”
I turn to glare at him. “Thank you for showing respect for my autonomy, Connor. I can always rely on you to be considerate.”
Something flickers in his eyes, and I know I’ve hit him where it hurts. But then he smiles.
“I deserve that,” he concedes. “I suppose when we were together you never got to see how desperate I am for you. I was able to hide it better. I can’t do that anymore. So, yes, baby girl, even if it makes me a villain, I would have done everything to get you back.”
I swallow thickly. When we were together, he would video call me every day he was gone for an away game and we would talk for hours. When he was in the city, he would demand we spend every minute together, keeping me in bed, fucking me slow and sweet, hard and dirty, until I forgot everything else. When he looked at me, I knew he saw nothing else.
Ifthatwas him hiding it, what will he be like if he doesn’t hide it?
A group of old men walk out of a diner and their eyes alight on Connor. They’re probably all in their seventies or there about.
“Connor! What do you think of the Knight’s decision to trade Nolan?” One of them asks.
