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“You. This,” I say, motioning between us with my hand. “The way I feel. What I want. The fear is real, Eli. I’m afraid to like you. To be with you. I’m afraid you’ll hurt me, and I’ve been hurt before. It took me a while to bounce back. I won’t survive it again. On top of all that,” I continue rambling as I begin wearing a path in the carpet in front of the couch as I pace back and forth. “My job is on the line. I can’t screw this up. I may not love my job but it’s a step up. If I want to climb the ladder, I need to make this work. I can’t get fired. I can’t screw up.”
Eli pulls me to a stop, holding me at arm’s length. When I look up, concern is etched in his face, but his eyes are blazing with desire.
“My mom wants me to quit. She doesn’t like Steve.”
“No one likes Steve.”
“It feels like there’s more to the story that she’s not telling me.”
“There probably is, and she’ll probably never tell you. So do what you want to do, Taylor. Live your life. If you want to quit, then quit. If you don’t, don’t.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want. It’s not my life. It’s yours. The only person you need to make happy is yourself. Because if you’re not happy with who you are, with what you do, the person you’re with will never be enough to make you happy. And I want to be that person … so decide. Take control. Then, when you figure it out, find me. I want to be a part of the happiness.”
After kissing me on the cheek, Eli releases his hold on my shoulders and walks past me. Spinning in place, my words stop him just as he reaches for the handle.
“That’s all you’re going to say? I basically confess that I want to be with you and you’re walking away?”
Without turning to face me he says, “I want to be with you, too, but I want you to be happy. To be sure it’s what you want. Life is scary, Taylor. I want you to be sure I’m worth the risk before you decide, that’s all. If that means we have to wait until the movie is over so your job’s not on the line, we can do that. I won’t make the decision for you. You’re an adult.”
He’s gone before I can reply. My phone’s vibrating on the bed but I can’t look away from the door. My feet won’t move to answer it. Because he just gave me exactly what I needed.
Confidence.
Power.
The strength to stand up for what I want, even if that means there are consequences to face down the road.
And I want Eli Simms.
Today, not when the movie is wrapped.
Not in a few days when we’re back in LA.
Willing my feet to move, I’m surprised when they cooperate. Pulling the door open, I march down the hall, turning the corner toward the elevator bank when I spot Eli about to step inside. Running to catch the doors before they close, I slip through just in time.
“Taylor? What are you doing?” he asks, shock evident in every word.
“I want you.”
“I’m pretty sure we established that,” he replies, his voice taking on a sultry tone that causes a stir in my belly.
“I made up my mind. I want you,” I repeat. “Today. Tomorrow. Next week. Next month. I want to take the chance. Throw caution to the wind. I’m not worried about my job, Eli. I’m not even worried that you’ll hurt me right now. Because those things can change in the blink of an eye. What isn’t going to change is the way I feel about you. You’ve managed to get under my skin, into my heart, take up residency, no matter how much I persisted.”
“It was the flowers, wasn’t it?”
All I can do is laugh as I wrap my arms around his neck and pull his lips to mine. Kissing Eli without reservation, giving him my heart in the elevator of the resort isn’t the best idea I’ve ever had, but it sure isn’t the worst either.
When the doors slide open in the lobby, our lips still locked together, Eli reaches behind me and blindly starts pushing buttons. When I hear the doors close again, his hands glide down my body, over the globes of my ass, and then I’m being lifted into the air. Wrapping my legs around his waist, I let out a moan as he presses my body against the back wall of the elevator.
“Taylor,” he growls.
“I know,” I reply. He doesn’t have to say the words. I know exactly what he’s feeling, what he’s thinking.
This is too fast. It’s too much. But it feels so right.
When the elevator returns us to my floor, Eli places me back on my feet and we walk hand in hand back to my room. As soon as we’re across the threshold, he pulls me in and wraps his arms around me.
