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“But, for the record, I’m glad you came.I haven’t stopped thinking about you since we met.I kept hoping you’d call me.”
It was risky to tell her all of that.If she wasn’t interested, he’d get over it.Eventually.The last thing he wanted to do was put any pressure on her.
“I’ve thought about you too,” she said, so quietly he barely heard her.
He stood a little taller.“Yeah?”
She nodded.“Yeah.I just…I’m not ready to date.I feel like I finally get to be myself again, and I don’t want that to change.”
He lowered himself to a squat so they were eye to eye.“First of all, a good man would never want to change you.He would want you to be yourself.Second, it’s okay if you’re not ready to date.I respect that.How about if we try being friends?”
Her wide blue eyes searched his face for a long moment before she nodded.“Okay.Friends works.”
It wasn’t exactly what he wanted, but it was a start.He nodded and rose.“Friends then.You have my number.When you think you might want to hang out, the ball’s in your court.”
“Okay.Thank you for being so nice to me, Levi.”
“You’re welcome, kitten.Will you text me when you get home so I know you made it safely?”
She looked up at him with the first mischievous look he’d seen from her.“Do you ask all your friends to text you when they get home?”
A smile spread across his face, and he winked at her.“Of course.”
She giggled, and his heart soared.That was a sound he wanted to hear a lot more of.
“Goodnight, Levi.”
“Night, kitten.Don’t forget to text me.”
When she rolled her eyes and pulled her car door shut, he chuckled.She may have been abused before, but that Little girl still had plenty of spirit inside of her.
Remi and Kade were waiting for Doc when he went back into the clubhouse.Remi had a look on her face that told him Kade had already lectured her thoroughly.And though she looked regretful at the moment, Doc was under no illusions that she was sorry.
He raised his eyebrows at the Little girl.“So, what was that all about, Remi?”
She glanced at Kade, who also raised his brows.
Remi sniffed.“I heard you talking to Gabriel about her, and I heard you tell him you weren’t going to try and date her because she wasn’t interested, but I think sheisinterested.”
He put his hands on his hips and gave her a stern look.“Whether she’s interested or not is none of your business.She just got out of a bad relationship, and she doesn’t want to start a new one.I wouldn’t be a good Daddy if I tried to pressure her into something she’s not ready for.Right?”
Remi’s eyes flashed when she realized what he’d said.“Yeah, I guess you’re right.I’m sorry, Doc.I think you’d be such a good Daddy, and I wanted to meet her for myself to get a feel for her.The second I saw her, I knew she was perfect for you.I still think she is.”
His heart softened a little.Remi was naughty for meddling, but she wasn’t wrong.There was something between him and Harper.Even if Harper wasn’t ready for it yet.Washeready?He’d avoided relationships for as long as he could remember.
Most women wouldn’t want to wake up to a man having nightmares and then deal with the aftermath.It was the reason Doc hadn’t had a sleepover with a woman since before he was in the army.Sex?Definitely.Sleepovers?Absolutely not.
“Remi, I appreciate what you were trying to do, but it wasn’t the right way to do it.I’m glad you made friends with her.I think she needs some good, honest ones like you girls.And I hope you’ll continue to be her friend after tonight.But no more getting in the middle of my business, got it?”
She nodded.“Yes, I promise I won’t.But you won’t give up on her, right?”
He thought about it for a moment.He definitely wouldn’t give up on her.He would be her friend.He was pretty sure she didn’t have any, so if that’s all he could be for her, that was fine.He was Remi, Carlee, and Ivy’s friend.He’d be Harper’s too.
“I’m not going to give up on her, Remi.But I’m also not going to pursue her.I have to let her heal the way she needs to.I’ll be there for her however she needs.But you have to respect that she needs her space and time to get over what she went through with her ex.I don’t know the depth of it or how badly he hurt her.”
Remi lowered her eyes.“I think he hurt her badly.She didn’t go into detail, but from the comments she made, it sounded like he controlled everything, but not in a good way.I don’t think she was allowed to have friends or make any of her own choices, and now she struggles with that.She couldn’t decide what she wanted when I offered her several different drinks, and I saw her hesitating when she was trying to pick cheese from the charcuterie board.”
With every word, his jaw tightened a little bit more.He didn’t miss Kade clenching his fists too.
