AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Tell me what you’re thinking,” he demanded.
I shook my head but didn’t look away.
“About this?” He put his fingertips on my chin and kissed me exactly how he had that day.
Instead of stomping on his foot or biting his lip or kneeing him in the groin—I kissed him back. Not just that, I wrapped my arms around his neck.
“Once wasn’t enough, Sloane. You know it as well as I do.”
Like a bucket of ice water had been poured over me, the moment was ruined. I slid my hands from his neck to his chest and pushed with all my might. “Stop this,” I spat.
His eyes opened wide. “I keep saying and doing the wrong thing when all I want to do is get it right.”
“I can’t be that person, Tackle. I can’t scratch whenever you have an itch.” I reached out and hit the emergency button again, and the elevator began moving.
“What makes you think that’s what I want?”
I walked out when the door opened. “You said you wanted to explain, not ask me questions.”
Tackle didn’t speak again until we were inside the apartment. I pulled out a chair at the dining table and sat down. He did the same.
“That day on the staircase—I guess it was Christmas—you said something about me having a girlfriend. I don’t.”
“I don’t care one way or the other,” I lied.
“I know your brother told you there was a woman—”
“Like I said…”
He put his hand on the edge of my chair and turned it so we were sitting knee to knee. “You wanna know who I was talking about when I told your brother there was a woman who I wasn’t sure felt the same way I did?”
“Absolutely not.” I felt tears threatening. If I let myself cry now, it would be the most humiliating moment of my life.
“You.”
“You’re such a liar.” I got up from the chair. Tackle stood too and grabbed my wrist.
“Look at me.” He pulled me close to him, cupped my cheek with his palm, and stared into my eyes. “You, Sloane.”
God, I wanted to believe him. Dare I?
“When that plane landed, there was a part of me that wished it was only you waiting for us. I even wished Halo wasn’t with me. All I wanted to do was hold you in my arms and tell you…”
“Tell me what?”
“I’ve wanted you for years, Sloane. Even before I took you to your prom.”
“You did that as a favor to Knox.”
He shook his head. “Nope. Your mom called him and asked him to come home and take you. I told him I was going home anyway and volunteered to do it.”
I scrunched my eyes. “What did Knox say?”
“He thanked me.”
“Did he suspect anything?”
Tackle shook his head a second time.
