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She sank below the surface, watching as he grabbed her towel and dried off. It was freezing out there, but with that came clarity. What he was doing was right.
“Can I ask you something before you go, Dylan?”
“Yes.” He pulled on his jeans, then reached for the shirt and sweater.
“If this hadn’t happened... if someone wasn’t after you, would you want to stay away from me?”
She was gripping the edge of the tub, hair slicked back, watching him. Dylan battled the urge to kiss her again; the need to hold her was so strong he stepped back.
“I’m not a happily-ever-after kind of guy, Piper, I think I made that clear from the start.” Dylan kept his voice deliberately cool.
“So it was just sex for you? The time with Grace and me in Rummer... all of it?”
“No. I was there as your friend, but there will never be anything more, Piper.”
He felt her eyes on him as he pulled on his socks and shoes. He was lying, Dylan knew that now. She was important to him, but he couldn’t deal with that now... maybe not ever.
“I don’t believe you.”
His head shot up, eyes locking on hers.
“In fact, I think you’re nothing like the man who arrived in Ryker Falls anymore.”
“Don’t make me into someone I’m not.”
“The thing is, Dylan, I’ve made sure never to fall for a guy who isn’t honest, loyal, and a general all-round nice guy.”
What did she mean by “fall for”?Dylan definitely did not feel a jolt of pure joy at the thought of this beautiful, amazing woman falling for him.
“We’re not happening, Piper.”
“Sure, you said that, and I’m not dumb, I get it, and the reasons why... well one of them anyway. But here’s the thing, Dylan.”
He stopped lacing up his trainers and looked at her.
“I love you.”
Their eyes held for long, terrifying seconds, and then he turned and walked away.
Chapter 32
Piper woke to the knowledge that in the early hours of the morning she’d told Dylan she loved him. Testing the words inside her head, she found she liked them, even if he hadn’t. Had it been a laughing moment, then she would have, because the terror on his face at her words had been almost comical.
“Then he turned and walked away from me,” she whispered. Flipping on her back, she stared at the ceiling.
Piper always believed in saying what she thought, even it if caused her pain. She’d realized how she felt about Dylan when she’d seen him standing there looking up at the mountains. Shoulders down, he’d looked defeated, and the pain inside her had told Piper what she’d been too scared to acknowledge. Her feelings for Dylan ran deep.
His hold on her after they’d made love had been fierce, almost like he never wanted to let her go.
“And yet he will never acknowledge what is between us,” Piper told the light hanging above her head. This thought had her getting out of bed.
Even after this mess that was his life had settled, Piper couldn’t be sure he would want her and Grace, so she needed to focus on the things she could control.
Pulling on her dressing gown and slippers, she made her way downstairs. Grace was seated in her high chair, and Mr. Goldhirsh, dressed in his running gear, was feeding her.
Piper didn’t like to give too much thought to the fact that he’d probably been here all night, and what he’d been doing while she’d been making love with Dylan. So instead she placed kisses on his head and Grace’s, then made for the coffee.
“Sleep well, baby?”
