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Albert harumphed. “Well, what are you gonna do to fix it?”
Ben had been poised, ready for a verbal attack and prepared to accept it. Instead, her father was offering hope.
Ben lifted his eyes to meet Albert’s. “You think I have a chance?”
“Well, I can’t say for sure, only she can say that. So, you’d best get to talking. We liked having you around. You were real good for each other.” And with that he turned around and went back into the house, leaving Ben to contemplate what the hell to do. He needed to be more like Kayleigh and have the guts to go for it. If he could put on an Elvis costume and perform for hundreds of strangers, why couldn’t he find the courage to have a conversation with the one person who meant everything to him? Because he was afraid of how that conversation would go. He needed a sign.
He drove home, his thoughts going around in his head. He fed Geralt and gave him a quick hug and kiss. Then he logged onto his computer and loaded the messenger app, ready to run the search he did every day, just in case. He typed GoodGirlKay into the search bar ready to read the words,We couldn’t find what you were looking for, try again?But instead her profile popped up. His heart thumped with excitement. She was there?
He clicked onto it and it brought up her picture, seeing her face flooded him with so much happiness that he knew he needed to fight for her. He couldn’t sit back and do nothing, no matter how scared he was because this would get him nowhere. She wasn’t online so he didn’t message her, but it was enough that she had unblocked him. That was the sign he’d needed.
The urge to see her was riding him hard, but she wasn’t home, and she wasn’t at the bar.
“Wait a minute,” he murmured, leaping for his phone, fumbling with it and bringing it to his face, checking the day and time. He knew exactly where she was.
With another quick ruffle of Geralt’s fur, Ben grabbed his keys and ran out the door. Speeding across one town and driving through another until he pulled up outside that neon sign of hope:Intrigue.
He was so proud of her for continuing her lessons, for her courage. Courage that he had needed to find for himself to come after her, to face potential rejection in order to fight for her, for what they had.
And when she stepped out of those doors ten minutes later, he knew it was all worth it.
She stopped short when she saw him, leaning against his car, surprise on her beautiful face. He noticed her peach hair was fading slightly, her natural light brown color fighting its way through. She looked like her old self, OG Kayleigh.
“Need a lift home?” he asked, a slight tremble of fear in his voice.
Kayleigh looked down the street before back to him, and when she nodded, triumph flared through him. He opened the door for her and stepped back, her spiced apple scent teasing him as she got in.
The journey was silent, he didn’t say anything and neither did she. He wanted to pull his thoughts together and by the time they arrived at her house, he was ready. He switched off the car and faced her, her blue eyes glimmering with questions.
“I’m sorry. What I did was an incredible violation, not to mention ethically questionable, and hurtful. I was so scared that you would be mad I had come looking for you that I pretended we were strangers when we weren’t. We were best friends, on the cusp of becoming something more, not that you knew how much I cared for you. We had a connection unlike any I’ve ever experienced, the kind you read about, the kind that people write songs about. How could I not follow my heart and find you?”
She sniffled. “It’s not like I had never asked you to move here. I just figured that if you ever took me up on that offer, you would tell me who you were.”
He shook his head. “I should have been upfront and honest with you about who I was from the start, and I can never apologize enough for not doing that. I didn’t mean to trick you or deceive you, that was never my intention. I just wanted my friend. My love. There’s no one like you Kayleigh, you thrill me.”
She sniffled again and he looked over at her, her eyes pooling with tears. He ached to comfort her, he reached a hand across the space between them, pausing, giving her a chance to pull away before he took her hand in his. Her skin soft like velvet, he brought her hand to his lips.
“Please tell me I haven’t ruined the best thing that ever happened to me?” he rasped, his throat thick with emotion. Silence filled the car, loaded with tension and emotion so strong he almost couldn’t bear it.
Finally, she spoke. “Why are cats so good at video games?
Relief flooded him and a smile fought at his lips as he pretended to ponder her question. “Because they have nine lives?”
She nodded, her shy smile producing those adorable dimples that he loved and with a groan he kissed her knuckles again, never more grateful in his life to hear one of her jokes. He pulled her onto his lap and cupped her face with both hands, pressing urgent kisses over her lips, cheeks and jaw before she captured his mouth with a slow, sensual tongue-twisting kiss that left him panting and begging for more.
“God, I love you.” He pulled back, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear, stroking his thumb over the apple of her cheek.
She nibbled her lip, looking away briefly before she met his gaze again. “I love you, too.”
He pushed out a deep breath at her words. He hadn’t expected to hear them, but no words had ever sounded sweeter.
“Be my player two?” he whispered.
She smiled and pressed a kiss to his lips. “Absolutely.”
Two Months Later…
Kayleigh screamed along with the rest of the crowd at The Rusty Bucket Inn, desperate to get to him, elbowing Ruby out the way and not feeling bad about it one bit. That man on stage was hers and she needed everyone to know it.
