Page 101 of Fundamentals of Chemistry

The muscles in Jack’s jaw clenched and unclenched. “You didn’t know? You didn’t ask them to get involved?”

My head dropped back, and I let out a bark of humorless laughter. “Of course not! I mean, I wanted this job. But I wanted to do it on my own. What Dad did—to me, to you—it was fucked. So, I fixed it.”

“What did you do?”

“You know what I did.” A hot tear rolled down my cheek.

“I want to hear you say it.”

I paused. Heavy breaths escaped my lips in misty white clouds. My gaze was locked on Jack’s when I spoke.

“Richmond never would have hired me if it hadn’t been for the money. So, I told him I wouldn’t do it. I quit. I’m done.”

Jack studied me for a moment that felt like an eternity. I could see the gears in his mind turning as he processed what I said and reconciled the new information with what he thought he knew.

He must know that I decided to walk away from Newbury for him as much as for me. I wanted him to be happy. He was good and kind and didn’t deserve to be used the way he had. He had come here in good faith, not knowing that the equation changed when I threw my hat in the ring.

“Nobody’s ever had any expectations for me. People only care about the money or the name.” Another damn tear rolled down my cheek. “I thought I had done this on my own, you know? That Richmond just wanted me. I was so stupid.”

He took a step toward me. “It’s not stupid to be wanted for being you.”

“Nobody wants me.”

“I want you.” The words slipped out in a whisper, so soft that I might not have heard them if we hadn’t been standing so close.

My breath caught on a soft gasp. “I thought you hated me.”

He shook his head and took another step toward me. We weren’t touching, but he was close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from him.

“I made a mistake,” he began. “Everything had been going so well. I’ve been in love with you forever. And being with you, here at Newbury—it was better than anything I ever dreamed. I should have never believed you would betray me. What you did—no one has ever done anything like that for me.”

I swallowed the lump that lodged itself in my throat at his words.

“Say it again,” I said.

“I’m sorry,” he said, eyebrows drawn together in concern. “And thank you.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “The part where you said you loved me.”

His brow relaxed, and his lips curved into that perfect smile that was just a little crooked. He placed his hands on my upper arms, and I couldn’t help but lean into him, my head tilted back so I could hold his gaze.

“I love you,” he said.

My face split into the widest smile. I laughed and sniffed, and another stupid tear rolled down my cheek.

“I love you too,” I said.

He lowered his face as I pressed up on my toes, and our lips met in a soft kiss. Our arms snaked around each other, pulling our bodies and mouths firmly together. Joy and relief and hope exploded through my body and into the kiss.

Jack didn’t hate me. I hadn’t even dared hope that he might love me too. My heart soared and sang. Every iota of tension melted away until I was floating like a feather in a vacuum chamber.

We slowly broke the kiss and stared into each other’s eyes. I hadn’t realized how much I missed his beautiful, chocolate eyes until right this moment.

He raised a hand to cup my cheek and brushed away a tear.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “Please don’t cry.”

I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt, and laughed when the tears continued to come.