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“After my last shoot, I had an interview scheduled with The Heart of Hollywood. Millions of eyes would see or hear my interview. I blasted the truth to everyone. About Alyson and Layla. How my engagement was a ruse to garner attention for Layla and her lackluster modeling career. And then I told millions of people about you. About us. How I ran into the love of my life and instantly decided I was moving home.”
Across from me, Cora gasps. For a completely different reason, her eyes pool, soften. Her lips tremble. And I can’t take it anymore. No longer able to stay on the opposite side of the table, I rise and slide into the seat beside her. She watches my every move as she bites her lower lip.
“Gavin,” she whispers.
I frame her face with my hands and brush away a fallen tear. Leaning into her, my lips a breath from hers, I tell Cora the words only meant for her.
“I love you. Only you. Always.”
And as badly as I want to kiss her, I resist the urge. With all the shit I have put Cora through, I won’t fuck this up. I want her to want to kiss me. Want her to initiate. Need her to be the one who moves us forward. No matter what, my heart is hers. Always has been. Always will be. But I crushed her heart all those years ago. And I will wait however long it takes for her to be ready for us. For me.
Cora wraps her hands around my forearms and grips them like it’s her last breath. Her gaze unwavering as her watery green eyes stare up at me. “I love you, too.” She pinches her eyes shut and wetness slips between her lashes to my fingertips. I wipe them away, then lift my lips to her lids and kiss them each with reverence.
“I know it will take time, but I vow to make us whole again. Whatever I need to do to fix us, I will. Without you, nothing else matters.”
She attempts to nod, but my hands keep her face hostage. We both laugh a mo
ment, and I am certain we look like lunatics. But as long as Cora is with me, I don’t give a damn what people think of me. With her by my side, I can be anyone.
After I drop my hands, I switch to a more serious tone. “Go out with me. On a date. Please?”
Cora reaches up and cups my cheeks, scratching my jawline before her hands fall to my chest and rest over my heart. “What if we go out with everyone? Obviously, you know Micah and Shelly, but I would love for you to get to know Jonas and Erin better. They’ve been there for me when I needed them. They’re family. And I really want you to be comfortable with them.”
Hanging out with everyone else isn’t exactly what I had in mind for a date with Cora, but I will take every moment she grants me. If this is important to her—Jonas and I being friendly—I will set aside my jealousy. Jealousy over the fact that this guy has spent more years with her than I have. Although their relationship is strictly platonic, I am not blind to the way he looks at her. Maybe time with him is the perfect idea. For both of us.
“Okay, let’s go out with everyone. When? Where?”
She claps and fidgets in her seat. “Yay! I’ll talk to Shelly and we’ll figure everything out. Then you’ll be the next to know.”
Her happiness is infectious. It lures me in and holds me captive. And I stay willingly, a prisoner of her heart. Whatever it takes to make my girl happy, I plan to do it. Because seeing her smile brightens the darkest skies.
After I pay the bill, we walk back to her car hand in hand. Our stride is leisure. Our voices absent. And it is absolute perfection. When we reach her car, I spin her around and wrap my arms around her. I rest my chin on the crown of her head and gently rock side to side, shutting my eyes and relishing the weight of her body pressed to mine. Her arms snake around my back and squeeze me tight. I don’t want to let her go. Not now. Not ever.
I kiss her hair, release my hold on her and run my hands down her biceps. “Call me when you get everything sorted out with Shelly.”
She tips her head back and meets my sunglass-covered eyes. “I will. Promise.”
I step back and play with a strand of her hair. “I love you. See you soon.”
God, I don’t want to walk away, but know I need to. Cora needs to have control over what happens with us. What happens next. Unbeknownst to her, I have put my life and the future of us in her hands. My fitful heart and restless soul sit nestled inside her. This time around, she makes all the decisions and I make none.
“I love you, too.”
As soon as she says the words, I pivot and walk away. Her eyes singe me as I amble down the sidewalk, away from her and into the unknown. But there is no other place I would rather be.
Seventeen
Cora
It feels as if I am in grade school again as I stand outside the entrance of Dave and Busters. Bright orange and yellow paint coat the brick exterior. A large, angular metal awning hangs over the entrance. The automatic doors whoosh open then glide shut. The action mesmerizes me briefly until Shelly comes up behind me, bouncing like an adolescent.
What is it about an arcade that makes you feel twenty years younger? Who knows, but whatever it is, I love it.
Shelly unlocks her phone and scrolls through her text history. A moment later, she assures me everyone should be here in the next ten minutes.
We loiter near the entrance, steering clear of patrons coming or going, and get lost in our cell phones. Shelly zones out in social media land while I check my email. A few minutes later, Erin and Jonas walk up.
We are catching up when I spot Micah and Gavin getting out of an all-black Range Rover. Black paint, pitch-black tint, blacked-out logos. All. Black. Although I only see Micah on occasion, I know this car isn’t his. This must be Gavin’s car. And the idea of him owning an all-black custom vehicle has me smiling like an idiot.
