He chuckles. “No, this is about you getting out of your own way and realizing that the life you’ve had up until this point isn’t the life you’re destined for.”
My heart hammers in my chest. “And what is it you think I’m destined for?”
“Love.”
The word encompasses so much.
Loving myself.
Loving others.
Letting others love me.
I don’t know how to do any of it. My greatest fear is that I’ll end up exactly like the person my father told me I was, worthless and undeserving. I’ve buried myself in hockey, practicing so Icould be the best and prove him wrong. But I haven’t quite figured out how to be worth a damn in any other aspect of my life. I’m not fun and carefree like Presley. I’m not friendly and confident like Stephen. I’m not much of anything. Nothing that matters.
But gazing into the blue eyes looking back at me with such certainty, it’s hard to deny him. I want the kind of life he’s talking about. I want more than what I’ve had.
I want it with him. With them.
Instead of fooling around and making each other come, Stephen pulls me down onto his bed and lays his head on my chest. It’s bigger than sex. It’s more than a physical connection. It’s intimacy. Trust. Vulnerability. And I don’t fight it. It feels good to give in to him.
“The three of us are going to be something incredible,” Stephen whispers. “Just you wait and see.”
“This feels so creepy.”
I scoff. “Are you kidding? This is fun. It’s like a stakeout.”
Chance rolls his eyes. “We’re sitting in an elementary school parking lot essentially stalking one of the teachers.”
“You always make everything so negative. You’re such a grump.”
If looks could kill, pretty sure I’d be dead with the way Chance glares at me. “Yeah, that’s me. I ruin everything. How could I forget?”
Guilt slices through me like a knife. “I was just kidding. I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Yeah, you did.” He sits back against the passenger seat, and shifts his gaze out the windshield. “And you meant it when you said the same thing four years ago.”
“Look, I’m sorry about that. I’m sorry I said what I said. I didn’t mean it. I was just hurting, and I took it out on you.” I pause, trying to choose my words carefully so this doesn’tescalate into a fight. “I was angry at you for pushing me away, and not fighting for us.”
“Presley left us. How was I supposed to fight for someone who didn’t care enough to say goodbye, or let us in on what was going on?”
“I get that, but you didn’t fight foruseither.”
His jaw works under his skin. “You were better off without me. I would’ve only dragged you down. You were right to say what you said.”
I tip my chin. “And now...?”
His eyes flick back to mine. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know, yet you’re here.” I take a chance and reach for him over the console, brushing my fingertips against his. “With me.”
Chance’s chest rises and falls with his shallow breaths as his eyes bounce between mine.
“You know what you want, you’re just afraid,” I whisper, lacing our fingers together. “Admit it.”
His gaze drops to my mouth. “I’m terrified.” His voice comes out like a hushed confession, and it hangs between us, igniting the energy around us.
I lean forward, and grip the back of his neck with my free hand, pulling him closer to me. “It’ll be different this time around.”
