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“Simon, in here,” she called out.
He walked in and joined her on the couch. He glanced at the large screen television. “You didn’t get enough of this the other night?”
“Well, it is one of my favorite movies.” She arched a brow. “And we didn’t get to see the end. Remember?”
“Hmm... I might remember getting distracted.” His eyes sparkled with merriment. He was having fun with her.
With the way he was looking at her, with her own desire reflected in his eyes, her face filled with so much heat that she thought her hair would spontaneously catch fire. She remembered every single last delicious detail of what had happened the other night. The thing she didn’t know was where it left them. They’d been so busy and so distracted that they hadn’t had time to talk—until now.
As she turned off the television, she had the distinct feeling she wouldn’t see the end of it tonight either. Though she couldn’t complain. This distraction was definitely so much better than the movie.
Still, she was nervous. They had to talk about the future—their future. And though she had a really good feeling about where they were headed, saying the words would make it real. Her insides shivered with nerves. Not a bad kind of nervous. It was an excited kind of nervous.
She hadn’t told him yet, but she loved him. It hadn’t happened suddenly, but rather she figured it must have happened slowly over time. Somewhere along the way, as they’d shared their morning coffee and discussed current events, or she’d regaled him with a story about what happened at the bakery the day before, she’d fallen in love with Simon.
Those mornings had seemed so innocent—so laid-back—that she hadn’t realized what was happening until now. She was madly, crazily in love with Simon. And now she was having his baby.
And soon they would be one big happy family. Her heart swelled with love. Her happiness overflowed into a big smile that lifted her lips and puffed up her cheeks. They were going to be so—
“I think we should live together,” he said.
“What?” She swallowed hard. Was it possible her dreams were coming true? It was time she made her own confession. Her heart hammered so loudly in her chest that it echoed in her ears. It’d be so easy to back out—to keep her feelings to herself.
After all, everyone she’d loved had vanished from her life. What if the same thing happened to Simon?
But she had the baby now. And she loved it dearly. She had faith that the baby would always be a part of her life, now and in the future. If she could believe that, then she could open her heart to Simon. She could believe they’d have a future.
“Simon.” She waited until his gaze met hers. “I love you.”
He took a step back as though in shock. Was her admission that much of a surprise? Was she the only one who felt that way?
She couldn’t drop the subject. When he didn’t say anything, she said, “Simon, do you love me?”
“I... I’m sorry. This was a mistake. I didn’t mean to get your hopes up that—that we would be more than we are.”
Her heart sank all the way down to her bare feet with her pink shimmery nail polish. His invitation to move in wasn’t about love. It was about convenience—Simon’s convenience.
She thought lots of things, like falling for him was the biggest mistake of her life. She was thinking it was time to pack her bags and get back to reality. Staying here would only allow her to wonder what if, and that was dangerous.
She turned away.
“Pepper?”
“Leave me alone.”
With Daisy right behind her, Pepper moved toward the hallway that led to her bedroom as fast as her legs would carry her. Her knees felt like jelly as she moved. She just needed to keep it together until she reached her room and was able to close the door. It was just down at the end of the hall.
“Pepper.”
Unshed tears stung the backs of her eyes. She blinked repeatedly, refusing to give in to them. It wasn’t much further now.
And then she was there. She slipped inside and closed the door. The weight of reality pushed down on her. She sank down on the edge of the bed. She knew what needed to be done—she needed to pack.
It was time to go, to get her life back on track. The apartment wasn’t finished, but it was close enough. The things that were left to do could be completed with her living there. She didn’t have any other choice. As it was, she’d stayed at the penthouse too long.
Once she was back in her own home around her own things, she would feel better. Right?
What choice did she have? She couldn’t stay here and take the crumbs of affection that Simon was willing to toss her way. And in the end, he would leave too—just like the other people she’d loved so dearly.
