“Jesus, is your brain already firing?” Titus’s sleepy voice came from above my head.
I tilted back to see that his eyes were still closed. “Good morning, grumpy pants.”
He smiled and blinked his eyes open. “I’m not wearing any pants. Nor are any of the pants I own grumpy.”
How could a guy look so good first thing in the morning? Even his ridiculous hair looked good all disheveled from my hands clutching him last night for round two after we ate dinner. So not fair.
“I’m sure they’re not. You’re the happiest guy I know. Do you ever get mad? Like, want to punch someone in the nose mad?”
Titus got serious. “Sure. Didn’t you see me with that peacock the other night? I wanted to punch him.”
I laughed. “Seriously? The peacock?”
Titus sat up, indignant. “He kicked me in the balls!”
I laughed until he hauled me up next to him, our backs to the headboard. When I’d finally calmed down, he took my hand and laced our fingers together.
“I actually have only hated one person in my life and that’s Daire. For what he did to you.”
The temperature in the room seemed to drop with the simple mention of his name. My gut clenched and I wasn’t sure what to say to bring back the happy-go-lucky Titus or the joy that had filled me from waking up next to him.
“He’s an easy one to hate, that’s for sure.”
Titus twisted toward me so suddenly I almost jumped. “What happened, Lia? What did you see in him? Please explain it to me so I understand.”
I sniffed, hating the subject but knowing we would have to talk about it at some point. If we loved each other, then Titus deserved to know what had happened with Daire. And especially why I’d put a wall between Titus and me for almost a year.
“I need coffee for this.”
Titus squeezed my hand. “I’ll make you coffee, but only if you promise to trust me with the truth.”
I tried out a smile, but it felt weak. “I promise.”
Titus let me go with a nod, climbing out of bed and making us both a cup of coffee with the coffee maker I had in my room. Once he was back in bed and we’d both taken some fortifying sips, I launched into it despite how little I wanted to cut myself open and bleed out the bitter details I was trying to move past.
“Have you ever been infatuated with someone? Utterly charmed and intrigued?” At Titus’s nod, I continued. “That’s how it was for me with Daire. He was charming and fun and exciting in the beginning. I was dazzled. By the time I realized he’d changed, we’d become a habit I didn’t see how to break. And quite frankly, he was very good with his apologies. So believable. For a girl who doesn’t put up with bullshit, I sure found ways to explain away his bad behavior. And that’s the part that makes me nauseous.”
I put the coffee down, no longer wanting that bitter taste to go along with my story.
Titus took my hand in his again. “It’s not your fault. Wanting to see the good in someone doesn’t make you weak.”
I scoffed and Titus tightened his grip. “I’m serious. Leaving him makes you the strongest person I know.”
My eyes were swimming and I couldn’t look over at Titus for a whole minute in order to get myself together. Crying was ridiculous and I wouldn’t start that shit now. When I had myself under control, I climbed on his lap and rested my head on his shoulder.
“That’s why I love you, Titus. You always see the good in people, specifically me.”
Titus’s whole body went rigid, his heartbeat thundering below my ear. “You love me?”
I grinned and traced a finger over his Adam’s apple as he swallowed hard. “Yep. I know I acted hesitant at first, but the last two weeks have been the best I’ve ever known. I figure loving you as my friend is the perfect jumping-off point for loving you as my boyfriend.”
Titus sprang into action, rolling me onto my back and bracing above me on his muscular arms. His gaze was so intense I couldn’t possibly look away, even though my inclination was to tease him to break the tension.
He reached between us and notched himself between my legs, deliciously hard for me on a moment’s notice. “Say it again,” he growled.
My breath caught even as my body went up in flames at his tone. “I love you, Titus.”
No sooner were the words out of my mouth than he thrust inside me, filling me up in more ways than one. I opened, he pushed, and somehow we found each other as more than friends.
18
Amelia
If there was ever a time for stilettos, it was when your boyfriend was taking you out on a date in front of the whole town you grew up in. Titus didn’t waste any time asking me out on a “real date”—his words, not mine—the morning after I told him I loved him. Those three little words were the green light to letting the whole town know we were together. Reservations at Forty-Diner were for six and I had exactly thirty seconds to spare after I slipped on the heels I’d bought two years ago, knowing I just had to have them.
I took a steading breath and talked myself through the evening. I wasn’t nervous to be with Titus. I was nervous to flaunt my relationship with him to all the world. And for all my twenty-eight years on this planet, Auburn Hill was my world. I hadn’t cared if anyone knew I was dating Daire, which made this whole thing a bit confusing. I guessed Titus was more special than all that. What we had together meant everything to me and I wasn’t sure if I wanted any outside
