Page 19 of Flawless

I wanted to do all the little things ‘normal’ couples did. Things I’d never wanted to do with anyone else. Like take long walks. Go to movies. Get ice cream. Or stroll a farmer’s market holding his hand.

What the hell was happening to me?

He laughed, warming a cold place deep inside me. “Good, I want that too.”

“How much longer can you stay?” Now that we’d decided to try this couple thing, I didn’t want him to leave until we’d made a dent in my silly checklist. “I want to do all the things with you before you go.”

He raised an eyebrow, looking amused. “All the things, huh? Care to fill me in?”

“All the silly couple things I’ve never wanted to do with anyone else.” He laughed as I ran down the list of things I had in my head. “Why are you laughing at me?”

“I think you’re adorable.” He kissed the tip of my nose. “And I think I’m going to love doing all the things with you no other guy has been lucky enough to do.”

“I’ve always dated musicians,” I admitted. “So almost every date we had revolved around music. A jam session. Going to a bar to listen to live music, a free concert in the park or⁠—”

He kissed me. “I don’t want to hear about the things you’ve done with other guys.”

Apparently, I had a lot to learn about dating someone like Cam, who always spoke his mind.

“Okay.”

“Why have you only dated musicians?”

“It was convenient, I guess. Music has been my life for as long as I can remember, so dating guys in the band, or guys I met at shows was just easy for me.” I rested my hand on his chest, and revealed another secret. “But I’ve always had a thing for cops.”

He curled his hand around my wrist. “Why?”

I told him the story of the cop who’d come to do wellness checks at our apartment when I was a kid, because my mama had been reported after leaving me alone one too many times.

“He always made me feel safe. Like he cared. He even gave me his business card, with his cell phone number, and told me to call him if I ever felt scared or was left alone.” I swallowed the tears and added, “I know he was just doing his job, but it meant a lot to me.”

I didn’t see pity in his eyes, only admiration, and that gave me a sense of peace.

Like I could tell him anything and he wouldn’t judge me.

“I’ve met a lot of kids in my line of work, who needed someone to help them feel safe. Getting to be that guy has been one of the greatest honours of my life.”

I rolled onto my back, feeling a rush of emotions that hit me hard.

Damn.

Was this what love felt like?

It couldn’t be.

You couldn’t fall in love this quickly, could you?

“Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to bring up a lot of bad memories by asking you about this stuff.”

“Don’t be sorry.” I had a feeling courage would be a buzzword in our relationship if I wanted to take off the mask and show him the Rylee no one else got to see. “Telling you things I don’t tell other people, about my upbringing, has made me feel things…” I wouldn’t go too far or say too much, but I needed him to know how much it meant to me that I felt comfortable enough to confide in him.

He released my wrist and brushed waves off my face while asking, “What kind of things?”

“It’s made me feel safe and secure, like you’re someone I can trust.”

His smile was the reward for my honesty when he said, “I love that.”

I had no doubt this man would either break me or help piece me back together.