AllFreeNovel
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Or he tells us we have to end it.
What the hell would I do?
I’d have to move away. Live on the other side of the world, build a life that would have me pumped full of adrenaline as often as possible, the only way not to think about her.
And even then, how long would I be able to keep that up?
Buster stops, sitting on the path, tilting his head as he stares up at me.
“What’s wrong, boy? Come on.”
I give his leash a light tug, normally enough to get him moving, but he stays where he is with a tilt to his head like he’s angry with me or curious about why I’m emitting so many bad-mood signals.
I realize it’s fair to Buster to have to deal with me feeling this way all the time.
I’ll have to fight it.
But how can I fight my instincts, my purpose for living?
“The whole future’s crumbling, boy,” I tell him, walking over and stroking his head softly. He nuzzles my leg, something he rarely does. “I knew this was a possibility. But….”
I trail off as people walk by, continuing the rest in my head. I don’t want anybody to think I’m talking to them, to have to maintain the façade of feeling normal.
There’s nothing normal about being apart from my woman.
My cell phone rings. I almost want to ignore it, but my position as CEO and founder doesn’t stop because my heart is breaking in two.
We saidI love you, took that vital step, and now it could all crumble to shit.
And the worst thing is that we can’t blame anybody except ourselves.
Or me, since I’m the one who started it, the one who pounced on her like the beast she makes me.
I could’ve waited. I could’ve asked for Julian’s blessing first.
I flinch when I see his name.
Along with a photo of us atop a mountain, arms around each other. He’s calling me.
“Hello,” I say, voice tight as I sit on a nearby bench.
Buster sits at my feet, looking up at me, a curious glint in his eyes as though he knows how important this conversation is.
“I’ve just spoken with Lauren,” he says, his tone difficult to read.
“I told you before,” he goes on, his tone getting warmer. “I want her to have the right man. I know you. I know you’ve waited. I know you’ve never played the field. I know that once you commit to something, you do it fully. But I need to ask you something before I tell you what I said to Lauren.”
“Anything,” I say, my heart pumping hard in my chest when I think about my woman and wonder if we could have our future after all.
The tattoo itches on my back as though reminding me…we haven’t finished yet.
“Will you ever hurt her?”
“No,” I say, voice getting husky with emotion.
“Will you always treat her fairly?”
“Always,” I say fiercely. “For the rest of our lives.”
