- Landon -
didn’t know what I was so afraid of.
Telling Margot I loved her seemed like the most natural thing in the world. And it felt great to take that word back and make it mean something to me again. Something good.
What’s more, I understood now why she needed to hear it. It was because, like all the other four-letter words, it was the way a person said it that gave it meaning. Love, itself, was just a word, but I love you, was a feeling.
Best of all, every time I said it, I got a little bit closer to believing that I deserved to have it said to me, which felt amazing. Almost as amazing as the fact that we were finally on the same page after years of false starts and missed opportunities.
Perhaps it was naive to get so swept up in it. Maybe everyone who falls in love feels the same. All I knew was that it seemed like my whole life had led to this moment, this moment when I finally got the girl, this moment when I knew what it was like to not feel so alone.
“Thank you,” she whispered, trailing a finger down my chest.
“For what?”
“For not putting your stuff in boxes and moving six states away,” she said. “For not being afraid of my feelings for you.”
My smiling eyes drifted up the stem of the rose that lay between her breasts and came to rest on her soft expression. “My only fear is that they won’t last. That you’ll love me so good like this for a while and then you’ll burn out.”
She shook her head. “Don’t be silly, Landon. I couldn’t stop loving you if I tried.”
My heart swelled in my chest.
“Trust me. I know from experience.”
“Well, I feel the same. And I’m never going to give you another reason to try.”
“Good.” A yawn escaped her mouth, and she lifted her hands to hide it before stretching them over her head.
By the time I opened my mouth, her bedside lamp had already hit the floor with a thud
She raised her eyebrows and rolled over to survey the damage.
“Did it break?”
“It’s only cracked,” she said, making no move to pick it up.
“I know a place that might be able to fix it.”
She waved the idea away with a flick of her wrist. “Don’t worry about it. The only thing I ever liked about it was the price tag.”
“If you change your mind—”
“You light up my life plenty,” she said, rolling onto her side to face me. “Besides, now there’s room for some flowers there.”
“But where would you get some?”
She smiled.
“Seriously, though. I’m sorry I filled your apartment with an antisocial amount of flowers. I really had no idea it was this tiny.”
“Don’t apologize,” she said, fluffing her pillow under her cheek. “It was sweet.”
I reached down and pulled one of her thighs over me, wishing we could stay in bed wrapped up in each other forever.
“Would you be offended if I brought some bouquets over to The Nest so they can be enjoyed by more people?”
“The Nest?”
“The homeless shelter around the corner where I volunteer sometimes.”
“Oh right.” God, she was incredible. “Of course not.”
“I think I only go there for purely selfish reasons, but—”
“Doesn’t matter if you enjoy it.”
“I do,” she said. “Plus, it might come in handy having contacts there now that you’re unemployed and can’t afford your mortgage. Maybe we could start eating there a few times a week instead of that place you like with the fancy cocktails.”
“Good one.”
Her expression grew serious. “That’s your cue to tell me where the hell you were this week and why you went MIA.”
“I quit. So that explains why I wasn’t at the office.”
She scrunched her face. “It’s a start.”
“And I went MIA so I could make arrangements for my future employment.”
“Why did you quit?” she asked. “I didn’t even know you were thinking about it, and the Fujama project was going so well.”
“I know. And I should’ve discussed it with you, but I didn’t want you to freak out…or tell me not to.”
“Well, of course I would’ve told you not to! I liked working with you.”
“I liked working with you, too.”
“So what gives?”
I stalled for a second.
“Tell me the truth.”
I exhaled. “Promise you won’t freak out?”
“No.”
“Fair enough.”
She craned her neck forward. “Well?”
“The truth is, it doesn’t matter how much we enjoy working together because Dick doesn’t enjoy us working together.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning he was going to get rid of one of us no matter what.”
She furrowed her brow. “Please don’t tell me you quit so he wouldn’t fire me.”
I kept my mouth shut.
“Landon! Why the heck would you do that? You were two months from a promotion!”
“Nothing was guaranteed.”
“Still! I’m disgusted that he would put you in that position. Way too disgusted to keep working for him.”
“I was hoping you’d feel that way.”
Her eyes searched mine. “You think I should quit, too?”
“Not yet. Not until you’ve completed the deliverables for the Fujama campaign.”
“Then what?”
“Then I want you to come work with me.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Come work with you where?”
“At the company I’m in the process of setting up.”
“What?”
“We’ll have our own agency,” I said. “It’ll be tough in the beginning, but I really believe that together we can make it a success.”
“You think we should go out on our own? Just like that? I only graduated in May.”
“Doesn’t matter. You learn fast, you hate your current boss, and by the time you finish the Fujama campaign, you’ll have more than enough experience and confidence to land clients on your own. Especially with my help.”
“You’re serious?”
“I’m so serious I’ve already spoken with a lawyer and found an office space.”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s not much, and it’s in one of those shared spaces where the other people using the coffee machine are in different businesses, but it’ll do for now.”
She blinked at me.
“What do you say?”
“I say you’re out of your mind.”
I smiled.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“Because you didn’t say no.”
She rolled her eyes. “I didn’t say yes either.”
“Why the hesitation?”
“I’m flattered you want me to work for you.”
“With me,” I corrected. “As my business partner.”
She swallowed. “You’re only saying that because you’re assuming I’ll be able to pull off the Fujama project.”
“Of course I’m assuming that. Surely your productivity is way up without me around trying to finger you against the copy machine every day?”
She blushed.
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking that I don’t know whether I should wring your neck or kiss you.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Do I get a vote?”
She sighed.
“Look, Margot. I know I can do this on my own. It’s something I always knew I’d do eventually, but I don’t want to do it alone. I want to do it with you.”
She pursed her lips.
“I want to do everything with you from now on, if you must know.”
“I want that, too.”
“Well, I hate to break it to you, but that’s only going to be possible if you don’t wring my neck.”
She considered the comment. “Good point.”
“Though you still might.”
“Why? What else are you hiding?”
“You.”
“What?”
“I’ve been hiding you,” I said. “From Matt.”
“You think we should tell him soon?”
I nodded. “Yeah. The sooner the better.”
“When did you have in mind?”
“The weekend after next. I already promised him.”
“Promised him what?”
I fixed my eyes on hers. “That he could finally meet the love of my life.”