Page 65 of Meet Me in Ivy Falls

‘Give her space. If she needs to talk, she will. I’ve learned that over the last year with Tessa.’ She chewed on her bottom lip. ‘You should bring Piper here. Show her all the work we’re doing.’

‘I did ask her before I drove here. She’s not ready, but she said soon.’

She nodded and let out a heavy breath. ‘I apologize for being so shrill. It’s just this.’ She waved a hand between the two of us. ‘I’m still trying to wrap my head around it, especially after all these years.’

‘I get it. There are a lot of reasons why you’re still leery of me. Of us. But I promise I’m not stepping back from our agreement. I just need some time with her.’

She leaned back against the counter, hesitancy heavy in her eyes. I couldn’t blame her. I’d done a real number on her heart and one intimate, and very hot, night of sex was not going to change that.

‘What are we doing, Beck?’ she said quietly.

‘Last time I looked we were having an honest conversation.’

‘No, I mean us. We said we weren’t going to walk down memory lane yet here we are complicating things.’ Her voice went tight. ‘Doing things without thinking them through.’

She took a step back like she needed to clear her head.

‘That last night between us at the lake when we lost our virginity, said our goodbyes, I believed you’d come back. That’d you keep all your promises to me. When you disappeared, it crushed everything I believed in. It’s hard for me to let it go. Move on so easily.’

That armor of hers was back up and it killed me.

‘What can I do to earn back your trust?’

‘I need to take a breath. Be convinced you’re not going to disappear on me again.’

A familiar ache filled my body. All I wanted was to get closer to her and here she was pushing me away. I shouldn’t be surprised. I’d broken her heart, and it was going to take more than an intense roll in the sheets to undo all the damage I’d caused.

‘Okay. I’ll do whatever you want but please don’t shut me out.’

‘For now let’s focus on the house. Go back to being partners in this. We can talk about what’s happening between you and me after everything is finished.’

‘Fine, but just so you know, I’m not going anywhere. I want to take things slow. Learn about each other as adults, not as kids who can’t keep their hands off each other.’

She arched a brow. ‘Yeah, we’re older now and still can’t control that part of ourselves.’

The low grind of the sander filled the air as Manny continued to restore the staircase.

‘Slow,’ she said like she was mulling it over.

‘Think about it,’ I said with a desperate plea.

She crossed her arms over her chest. ‘Like I said, let’s finish the house first.’

‘That’s not a no,’ I said with a little too much glee.

‘It’s not a yes either,’ she said wearily. ‘It’s a pause until we finish what we started here.’

She turned away and went back to the sink. I understood her hesitancy, why my explanation about the past wasn’t enough for her. If I had to prove to her day after day for the next forty years that she could trust me, I’d do it. I only hoped she’d give me that chance.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

TORRAN

How Do We Get To An Eight?

A week later Piper climbed the front steps with Beck hovering behind her. Slowly, she ran a hand over the front door which was painted her mother’s favorite shade of ruby red. She moved into the front hallway and gasped as her gaze wandered over the restored staircase leading to the second floor.

‘Do you like it?’ I asked, taking soft steps into the entryway behind her.