“No one ever expects the good ones,” he mumbled. I frowned at him. “Have you ever been in love?” I asked and winced. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that aloud. I mean, you’re welcome to tell me, but I’m not going to force you.”
“I should ask the same of you, then,” Pacey said, neatly dodging my question. I let him, however. I didn’t need to pry.
“No, I haven’t. I’ve dated, as you well know, but I haven’t been in love.”
“And why do you think that is?”
I snorted. “Are you my psychologist today?”
“If I have to be.”
“As I told Elise before, we’re twenty years old. Not everyone is going to find their soulmate or fall deeply and passionately in love when they’re our age.”
“You’re right. They aren’t. But they could. My parents did.”
That was the first real gem of information I had ever gotten from him. For all Pacey liked to speak about being open and communicative, he never told us anything profound about himself, other than the fact that he’d been raised in Europe and had lived in the US for a few years.
“I know this is hard,” Pacey began. “But give her a moment to breathe and think and then talk it out. If neither of you is ready for something serious, be open about it.”
Why did the thought of walking away twist something inside of me? We weren’t supposed to want more than we had, and yet that wasn’t entirely true. Since the beginning, we’d lied to ourselves regarding what we wanted and kept creeping forward. Now, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go back to a time when I wasn’t near Elise. When she wasn’t part of my daily life and thoughts.
“Hell, I’m not good at this.”
“Most people aren’t. That’s why it takes communication, as I said.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “And I guess that means I need to tell her about what’s going on with Dave.”
Pacey nodded. “You do. I thought you would have before this, honestly.”
I sighed. “I haven’t been able to. Elise hasn’t been talking to me. I was going to bring it up with her today, but it didn’t exactly work out.”
The other man studied my face before giving me a quick nod. “Then tell the girls, or I can tell Nessa.”
“You and Nessa?” I asked, raising a brow, intrigued.
“No, we’re just friends.” His gaze shot off into the distance for a moment, and I had to wonder if what he said was accurate.
Pacey pulled out his phone, checked the doorbell camera, and grinned. “I think it’s time for you to answer the door.”
I stiffened. “I hope to hell that grin means it’s not Dave.”
Pacey’s face sobered. “I would not be grinning or answering the door if it was him. We’d be calling the cops.”
“Is it Elise?” I asked, afraid yet desperate that it was.
“Of course. Now, go get her. The house is empty because I’m heading out. That will give you guys some privacy.”
“You’re sitting in here, barefoot, drinking coffee. You don’t need to leave on my account,” I said as I headed towards the front door.
“Oh, don’t worry, I can drink my coffee outside. Or anywhere. I just need to find my trainers. Good luck, and don’t fuck up.”
I rolled my eyes at that but oddly felt better. At least, I hoped so. I didn’t know what I felt about Elise, but it was enough that I wanted to know more. I was just afraid that she would get hurt in the bargain. And I didn’t know what to do about that.
I opened the door and met her gaze. She looked at me, her lower lip wobbling for a minute. I reached out for her, and she sank into my hold. Her body molded to mine as her arms tightened around my waist. It felt as if she were home, that I was home. And I couldn’t stop the emotion from pouring out.
“I’m so sorry,” we both said at the same time, and I let out a rough chuckle.
“Elise,” I whispered.
“No, let me,” she mumbled against my chest before pulling away. “I’m having a rough week, and I’ve been a jerk. I’m sorry for pushing you away. I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to do about anything, but I shouldn’t have treated you like I did.”
I shook my head and then kissed her brow. “I shouldn’t have walked away so quickly.”
“We’re not good at this, are we?” she asked softly.
I wanted to hold her forever, but I knew we should take a breath and at least get out of the doorway. “Probably not. Come inside. We can talk.”
“I thought that was my line,” she said.
“Maybe, or perhaps we should both actually talk.”
I pulled her inside, then closed and locked the door behind her. Once we were safely in the house, I kissed her softly on the mouth. She sank into me, wrapping her arms around my waist once again. I felt as if this was what I’d been waiting for all week. The moment she touched me, I felt fulfilled.
“I’m sorry for leaving. There are a few things I need to talk to you about, and I think they got all tangled up and I looked for an excuse to walk out.”
“What is it?” she asked. “What’s wrong, Dillon?”
I shook my head. “You first. Because I have a feeling that I’m going to need a drink after I talk about mine.”
“We’re a pair, aren’t we?” She bit her lip, and I wanted to lower my head and lick away the sting. I restrained myself. Barely.
“Maybe,” I whispered.
“Can we go to your room?” she asked and blushed. “Not for that,” she said, laughing. “Only because I want privacy.”
“We can. We have the whole house to ourselves, though. Pacey made sure of that.”
“But you have four roommates with keys. And I think Mackenzie has one, too.”
“She does, and since she helps with our grocery shopping because
