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“Even then.”
“All this time, I thought you hated me…”
He walks up to me and wraps his arms around me. “I never hated you, Dahlia. Not for a single second of a single day.”
“Then why did you avoid me for so long?”
“Because I knew what would happen if I got close to you again.”
“What?”
He ignores my question as he leans in and kisses me. Thisone is different—heis different—and I can’t help but obsess over every single detail.
The way his hands cradle my face like I’m the most precious thing in this world.
His thumb softly caressing my cheek, stroking back and forth in a way that has me shivering against him.
The tug on my heart as he answers my question without uttering a single word.
I’m terrified of acknowledging the serious feelings growing between us. He already got close to me once and pushed me away, so who’s to say he won’t do the same thing again?
Be present-minded and enjoy the moment. My therapist’s words of wisdom pop up in my head.
With the way he kisses me like I’m already his, I’m having a hard time ignoring the obvious.
You’ll have to admit these feelings eventually, the rational part of my brain adds.
I plan on it…just not tonight.
I half crawl, half hobble out of bed to use the restroom and clean myself up after a second round of sex. When I return and start searching for my clothes, Julian grabs me and throws me back into the center of the mattress.
“Put something on.” He hands me the TV remote after climbing into bed.
“How domestic of us.” I lay the sarcasm on thick, hoping it will shield the trembling in my voice.
“You haven’t seen anything yet.” He grabs a book from hisnightstand and a pair of reading glasses from a drawer.
I never realized how much I needed to see a shirtless Julian reading a book with glasses on, but I believe the image may have permanently altered my brain chemistry.
I end up cuddling against his chest and watching aSilver Vixensrerun while he reads from a leatherbound book I don’t recognize.
“What are you reading?” I pause the episode halfway through.
“An unofficial Lake Wisteria history book.”
“What?” I sit upright and knock the book from his hands in the process. Thankfully, he catches it by the worn spine before it falls to the floor.
“Sorry.”
He places the book back on the table. “Trust me. It isn’t as exciting as it sounds. The agricultural talk and detailed accounts of the first few brutal strawberry seasons put me to sleep two nights in a row.”
I chuckle.
“Did you know the Strawberry Festival was first started over a hundred years ago as a way to entice farmers into moving here?”
“That’s great and all, but I want to know if there is anything in there about Gerald and Francesca!”
He makes a face. “After reading Gerald’s backstory and his brothers’ reason for moving to Lake Wisteria, I almost feel bad about tearing down all his houses.”
