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“He wants to get back together. Exclusively.” Her eyes darted between his, trying to judge his guarded expression.
“So…are you going to?”
She shrugged. “I told him I needed time.”
“I see.”
“Because I wanted to see…I mean, I don’t want to assume…” She held out a hand, hoping she wouldn’t have to elaborate and make a fool of herself if she was wrong. When it became obvious he wasn’t going to help her out, she sucked in a deep breath. “I didn’t know what to tell him about us.”
He eased down the hallway, looking back over his shoulder as he spoke. “I don’t think there’s anything to tell.”
“There’s not?” she asked.
He turned back around to face her, his eyes on her lips. “Do you want there to be?”
“I mean, last night wasn’t nothing to me. It meant something.” He nodded but didn’t respond. “Did it mean something to you?” she asked.
He looked down, then back up, meeting her eyes. “Of course it did,” he said. “But I don’t want to promise you something I can’t give.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“I…look, I do like you, Blythe. But I’m not in a place for a relationship.”
“Oh,” she said, taking a step back from him as cool tears stung her eyes. She was embarrassed. What had she been thinking? “Okay.”
“Don’t be upset,” he told her, reaching for her arm.
“What was this, then, Finn? What was tonight? Why would you invite me back? You just thought you could sleep with me and send me away like the girl from last night?”
He let out a soft laugh, then his face went serious again. “I wasn’t going to sleep with you, Blythe.”
“Why is that funny?” she demanded.
“It’s not funny. You’re right that I shouldn’t have invited you here without explaining why I was. You were confused about everything with your boyfriend, and I didn’t want to add to that. But…I wanted to see you again.”
“I wanted to see you, too.”
“But I can’t date you.”
“Why?” she asked.
“Because…you made it clear last night that you are looking for something serious.”
She nodded with her lips pressed firmly together, slapping her leg. “Great. So, I scared you off.”
“It’s not that,” he said. “It’s just…it wouldn’t be fair to you to let you come into this expecting more than I can offer. I know what I bring to the table, and stability doesn’t come with my territory. I do like you, but, more than that, I care about you, so I want to be fair to your feelings.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know,” he told her. “And I don’t expect you to.”
“So, that’s it? You’re just taking yourself out of the running?”
“I don’t deserve to be in the running with a girl like you.”
She sank onto the arm of the couch. “A girl like me?” she demanded. “What’sthatsupposed to mean?”
“You’re just…I don’t know. You’re special.”
