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My gaze feels hot as it lands on her. “You gave him your heart, and he broke it. He betrayed you.”
She laughs, shaking her head, but there’s no humor in her laugh. “Like you’ve never betrayed a woman and broken her heart.”
I move closer to her. “I haveneverpromised to be faithful to a woman until you. You, I promise everything, including my heart.” Cassia turns away from the man on the floor, seemingly content to leave him, and me, behind, but I follow her, catching her hand. “You know I’d beat up a hundred men for you.”
She stops, studying me like she’s trying really hard to decipher me, and then a slow smile spreads across her lips. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“I give you my word.”
She’s laughing again, and the sound is light and musical. “I guess that’s sweet. Besides, he probably deserved being punched. He was a real ass.”
This is progress. Progress in so many ways. Getting to share this moment with her, and making her laugh.
Perhaps I’m even seeing one of the reasons why she’s been so hesitant to commit to us, if men have broken her heart before. Especially for such a stupid fucking reason. Who destroys a relationship because their woman is a hard worker who cares for the people in her life? Only a fool, that’s for sure. But at least the fool ruining his chance with her allowed her to have a chance with me.
Now, I just need to fix the problem between us.
“You know, I admire your work ethic. I admire everything you do for your family.”
Her smile fades, and she shrugs, looking uncomfortable. “It’s nothing. It’s what anyone would do.”
She’s unaccustomed to being complimented. Interesting. I’d have thought a woman as beautiful and incredible as her would be used to it.
“It’s not nothing,” I tell her firmly. “It’s not.”
She nibbles her bottom lip, eyeing me, and I wish I had the power to read her thoughts. Is she still angry with me? Have I begun to earn her trust after everything I’ve done wrong? Probably not. She undoubtedly still needs to hear the words because sometimes action isn’t enough.
“I'm sorry for the way I behaved at the last ball. I was a total asshole. I don't even really have an excuse. But you don't have to worry. I'm not that person anymore.”
“You're telling me, you've changed your entire personality in a week's time?” She asks me, smirking, but at least her gaze is back on me. Seeing me, even if not in the way I want.
“A lot of things about my life have changed in this last week." I reply honestly, stepping even closer to her. Needing her to see how sincere I am.
“Oh, what’s changed that much?” She asks, tilting her head, studying me.
“I found my mate.” The words rush out of me, stealing my breath with the intensity of the emotions that come along with them.
She doesn’t look as moved. “Why would that change who you are?” She gives me a once over then looks out over the crowd of people dancing around us once more. “I’m sure you've broken at least one heart already tonight.”
“I'll break them all if that means I get you. Dance with me?” I reach for her hand, and she doesn't snatch it back. I take that as an invitation, wrap my arm around her waist, and walk her to the middle of the dance floor.
“Aren't you a renowned playboy? How exactly is your life going to work with the old ball and chain around your ankle? Surely, you’d prefer to stay single.”
We come to a stop on the dance floor, and I try to ignore the way her words burn through me in an unpleasant way. Instead, I pull her close to me, and we sway together on the dance floor.
Having her in my arms feels right. It’s like the pain in my chest eases, and I can finally breathe easy.Fuck.I want to, hold her close, sink into her, and never let her go.
She stares. I realize she’s still waiting for an answer to her words. I almost want to laugh. Playboy? No. She owns me, heart and soul.
But if I tell her that, I’m going to scare her again, so I won’t. “It could be perceived that I'm a playboy, but in a committed relationship, in my marriage, I plan to be nothing but a one-woman man.”
She actually throws her head back and laughs at my statement. Like just the idea of me being faithful is laughable.Ouch.I don't want her to see that I'm offended, especially because she can’t possibly know how much her reaction hurts. She doesn't know me well enough, I suppose, to know that I'm being truthful down to my core. To know just how much I want a committed life with her after all I’ve experienced with my parents.
Finally, she’s back to grinning. “We'll see how long that lasts.”
I stare for a minute. I’m right that she doesn’t know how much her words hurt because she doesn’t know me. And she doesn’t know me because I haven’t opened myself up to her. Something I need to do if I want a life with her, no matter how unnatural it might feel.
“You wouldn't think it's funny if you grew up the way that I did.” I try not to sound cold. I try to brush off the feelings that always rise in me when I think about my parents.
