Page 140 of Show Me

Her eyes flash with anger as she crosses her arms over her chest. “Then what’re you asking?”

I don’t answer right away. Because I already know. And I don’t like it. “I feel you pushing me away. I want to know whether this is what you want or what you think I want. If you think I’m planning an exit strategy.”

She exhales, looking away before meeting my eyes again. “I’m trying not to let it get ahead of what it’s supposed to be.”

There’s nothing emotional in it. No heat. No argument. Just… decision. That lands worse than anything she could’ve said last night.

I step closer again, closing the space she’s been putting back piece by piece. “This doesn’t reset because you decide it does.”

“I’m not resetting it.” Her entire body is stiff as if she’s willing herself to stay in control. “I’m keeping it where it was supposed to be.”

“Casual.” I bite out the word. Even though it’s my fucking word. It’s what I asked for. Demanded. And she’s giving it to me.

“Yes. No expectations.”

It shouldn’t piss me off, but it does. I made the rules. She’s trying to follow them. But this is not her. Unfeeling. Closed off. Passionless. None of those are her. She’s vibrant. Full of life. Full of color.

We barely got started, and she’s decided it’s over. My gaze holds hers as I fight the urge to punch a hole in the wall, but I’d only have to fix the damned spot if I did. “And that includes pulling away whenever you decide we’re getting too close?”

Her arms unfold, hands slamming onto her hips as she meets my gaze dead-on. “It includes not pretending this is something it’s not.”

Silence stretches between us. I feel it now, clear, sharp, not something I can ignore. She’s already adjusting. Already stepping back. And I’m…. Not. That’s the problem. I want to pretend it has to do with her stalker, and it does. But that’s not the only reason.

Of course, I don’t want anything to happen to her. The thought of someone hurting her has my stomach in knots. But I also can’t imagine not spending time with her and not being with her.

Fuck, I’m an idiot. What in the fuck am I supposed to do with that? I drag my hand through my hair again, exhaling, forcing my voice back under control. “I’ll check the house. At least for a few more days.”

“Okay.”

No pushback. No argument. No stay. Just acceptance. In a perfect world, this wouldn’t bother me. This would be what I wanted, what I demanded.

But it feels like someone is shoving a meat cleaver into my chest, hacking my body into tiny pieces. I pick up my keys from the dresser, pausing for half a second before turning toward the door. “Lock up.”

“I will.”

I step out before there’s anything else to say. Before I give this more space than it already has.

The air outside is cold enough to bite. I scan the yard, fence, gate, tree line. Everything in place. Nothing off. Should feel like a win. It doesn’t.

I climb into my truck, grip tightening on the wheel as I start the engine, banging my palm on the steering wheel. She’s already decided how this ends before I’ve even figured out if I’m ready to let it.

After the engine catches, I pull out of the drive. And for the first time since this started, leaving feels like something’s slipping. And I don’t have a way to stop it.

Chapter Seventy-Four

Ruby

Later that Morning

Inside, I drop my purse behind the desk and power on the computer, the hum filling the space. The phone rings. I answer. My fingers move across the keyboard without hesitation, the rhythm steady, familiar.

Xavier is at a job site this morning. He didn’t text. Didn’t push before he left. Just… left. And I don’t like it. It hurts. It hurts more than I’m willing to admit.

Sure, he fought against me pushing to end things, but not because he loves me and wants to spend the rest of his life with me. No…. It’s because he wants to be the one who ends it.

He doesn’t do relationships. He makes the rules. He says when things are done. And if I wait that long, he’ll destroy me, and I’ll never find myself again.

The phone rings again. “Cole Construction.”