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She exhales and then smiles, her eyes softening. “Are you asking me to go steady?” Her voice is high pitched like an exaggerated cheerleader on those ridiculous chick flicks she watched when she was in high school.
I drop her hand and sigh. “I give up.”
She licks her lips, holding in a smirk. “Defeated the King! Finally!”
“You’ve been waiting twelve years to say that, haven’t you?”
“Pretty much.” She flashes a smug grin. “In fact, everything in my life has led up to this very moment.”
“Fuck, you’re a sassy thing today. What happened to the sweet little girl I first met?”
“You corrupted her,” she says matter-of-factly.
“Can’t say I’m sorry about that.”
She looks at me as if she’s in deep thought, and I try to read her. I know I have a lot of proving to do, but I’ll do whatever it takes to gain her trust again.
“I don’t want anyone else, Viola,” I say genuinely, knowing she needs to hear it. “I never truly did. It’s always been you.”
“I want to trust you,” she says softly. “But I’m scared.”
“What are you scared of?” I ask, hoping I can ease some of her fears.
“I’m scared of getting hurt again. Scared Drew will throw you across the room. Scared I’ll never fully be able to trust you.”
“Viola, listen to me. I’ll do whatever it takes to take those fears away. Don’t worry about Drew. I’ll talk to him and do whatever it takes to gain his trust, too. But don’t be scared of getting hurt. I can’t promise there won’t be times I fuck up, but I would never intentionally hurt you.” I take her head in mine again. “But I will promise you one thing. I won’t be like those guys you read about in your romance novels. I won’t feather the bed with red rose petals, make love to you under the stars, or write an original song and sing it to you on top of Butternut Hill.”
She chuckles, tilting her head to look deeper into my eyes.
“Because I’m not like those guys in your romance novels. I’m the guy who’ll fuck you against the wall, wrap my hand around your throat, and pull your hair as you scream out my name. I’m the guy who’ll have you waking up on a bare mattress because we fucked the sheets off it in the middle of the night. I’m the guy who can’t sing a tune to save my soul, but I’d tell you every single day of my life how much you mean to me. So, before you make your decision, you need to know everything it entails.”
I watch as her throat moves, her tongue running along her lips as she wets them. Blinking, she looks back up at me with glassy eyes.
“I don’t want you to be those guys in my romance novels,” she states. “They’re usually flawless with perfect abs and hair, and they always say the right things, and they’re always hung even when they’re soft…”
I put a hand up, making her stop so I can make sure I’m hearing her correctly. “Wait a minute…”
She ignores me and continues. “I don’t want perfect, Travis. I don’t expect a relationship where everything is always smooth and happy. I want us to continue challenging one another, testing the limits, and growing as one. I’d get bored being with a perfect guy. I’d feel inadequate, and I’d rather have an imperfect relationship than a perfect one.”
Her words are music to my ears. My heart beats harder in my chest. “Are you saying you’re all in?” I ask, desperate to hear her say the words.
She sucks in her lips and nods. “Yes. I am.”
Her eyes are glassing over again. I press my thumb over her cheek, catching a tear that drops down. “I hope those are tears of happiness.” I smirk, cupping her face.
“Tears of regret,” she spits out.
“Dammit, Viola,” I hiss, trying to hold in my annoyed laughter. “Are you always going to be this difficult to seduce?”
“You have a lot to learn, King.” She winks.
“Trust me. I know, Princess.” I bring our mouths together and push her lips apart with my tongue. “Just know that if I weren't on bed rest, I’d have both your legs above your head right now.”
“Clearly, it was your charm that won me over.”
“I thought it was my ability to make you count to ten with your head buried in the pillow?”
She playfully slaps my arm and scowls. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say I’d just agreed to be with a horny fifteen-year-old boy.”
