I’m standing on the steps of Morgan’s building, my finger hovering over the buzzer to her apartment.

It’s been a day since Joely came barging into my office, giving me a piece of her mind.

And I’ve done a lot of thinking since then. In fact, it’s all I’ve thought about, and the conclusion I’ve come to is…there’s no way Morgan would have done this to me.

I know her.

And Joely was wrong when she said I didn’t see Morgan. I do. I always did.

I was just an immature kid back then. I thought I knew who I was and what I wanted out of life. I accepted what Morgan had told me at face value instead of pushing her for answers.

Because, if I had done that, then we wouldn’t have wasted the last thirteen years by not being together.

But, if Morgan had been more open with me, called me out on my dickish behavior, then I would have had to listen.

But she didn’t. And here we are.

We’re both to blame for the past. But this, right now…this is all me.

I didn’t listen to her when she told me this wasn’t her doing. I should have heard her and trusted her because she’d never given me a reason not to.

I should have known she wouldn’t have done this.

We might have had our difficulties in the past. But one thing she never was, was cruel.

Unlike me.

I take a deep breath, ready to push the buzzer, when a window opens to my left, and the wrinkled, leathery face of an old lady stares back at me.

“Um, hi,” I say.

“You a cold-caller?” She scowls.

“No, ma’am.”

“You’re not here to try to sell me Bibles, are you? Because, if I ain’t found Jesus by now, then I ain’t never gonna.”

“Um…” I look down at my thousand-dollar suit, quite frankly insulted that she thinks I’m a Bible seller. “No, ma’am, I’m not here to sell Bibles.”

“Then, what the hell are you doing, loitering on my doorstep?”

“I’m, uh, here to see Morgan.”

Her eyes narrow on me. “Oh. You the boy who made my sweet girl Morgan cry?”

She must be the rottweiler neighbor that Morgan told me about. I forget what Morgan said her name was. On the few occasions when I stayed over here, I never saw her.

And never mind her being a rottweiler. She looks like Mama Fratelli from The Goonies. I’m half-expecting her to pull a gun on me and shoot me dead.

Basically, the woman is scary as shit.

“Um…yes, ma’am.”

“You here to make her cry again?”

“Not if I can help it.”

She glares at me for a long moment. I’m pretty sure she’s trying to eviscerate me with her eyes.

Then, she disappears inside and shuts the window.

Okay.

A second later, the door buzzes open.

Guess Mama Fratelli isn’t so bad after all.

I pull open the door and head inside. I’m halfway up the stairs when Mama Fratelli’s voice stops me. I turn back and look at her.

“You make Morgan cry again, and you’ll have me to deal with. I don’t know if Morgan ever told you what I did for work before I retired. But I worked in the coroner’s office, so I know how to get rid of a body without leaving any trace. You just keep that in mind, boy.”

Nope. I was right the first time. She’s frigging terrifying.

I’m pretty sure I just pissed my pants.

I swallow down. “Yes, ma’am.”

She gives me a firm nod of her head. Then, she turns and shuffles back in her apartment.

Holy shit.

I blow out a breath as I turn and then jog up the stairs to Morgan’s apartment.

When I reach her door, a minute later, I knock on it and wait.

I hear her soft footsteps coming up the hallway and toward the door, and my heart starts to thud.

“Mrs. Bigly, is that you?” she asks through the door.

Jesus, the sound of her voice…it’s like a blade to my chest.

“No. It’s me. Wilder.”

There’s silence behind the door, and for a moment, I think she isn’t going to let me in. Then, I hear the sound of a chain being removed and the door unlocking. The door opens to reveal Morgan.

It’s only been a few days since I last saw her, but it feels like it’s been an eternity.

Her face is clean of makeup. Her eyes are puffy, like she’s been crying—my fault.

Fuck, I’m an asshole.

Her hair is scraped back in a messy bun, and she’s wearing an old Northwestern sweater with black leggings.

And she is still the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.

How did I live my life the last nine years without her in it? Actually, scrap that. How the fuck did I meet her thirteen years ago and not make her mine the very instant I laid eyes on her?

I’m a fucking moron.

“What do you want?” she says, her voice cold.

“To talk.”

“If you’re here to yell at me again, then you can just turn around and leave.”

“I’m not here to yell. Just talk, I promise. Can I…come in?”

She hesitates, sizing me up with her eyes. Then, she steps back and moves aside, allowing me entry.

I step inside her apartment. As I pass her, the scent of her overwhelms me. So much so that I have to stop myself from grabbing her, wrapping my arms around her, burying my face in her hair, and begging for her forgiveness.

Somehow, I don’t think that would be welcomed.

I need to apologize first. Tell her how I feel about her. And then, after that, if she still hasn’t forgiven me, get to the begging part.

I follow Morgan into the living room.

“Can I get you something to drink?” she asks.

Even though I’ve been the world’s biggest jerk, she’s still polite enough to offer me a drink.

She’s fucking perfect.

And I’m an idiot.

“Water would be great, thanks.”

I take a seat on the sofa while I wait for her to come back.

She appears a few minutes later.

“Thanks,” I say when she hands me the water.

She sits in the chair across from me. I take a sip of water and then put it down on the coffee table.

I’m not really a guy who gets nervous. Right now, I’m nervous.

I lean forward, arms on my thighs, and I clasp my hands together as I look her in the face. “I’m sorry, Morgan,” I say. “So fucking sorry. For everything. For a couple of days ago. For accusing you of going to Coveted Lingerie and for the shitty things I said. I know you didn’t go to them and sell them the idea.”

“How do you know?” she bats back at me.

“Because I know you. I let the evidence override what I’d already known—that you would never do something like that to the company…to me.”

“How do you know that? You’ve only known me for a month.”

“I’ve known you for thirteen years. We might have spent most of those years apart, but I knew you in college, and I know you now.”

She laughs, and it sounds bitter. “You didn’t know me in college.”

“Actually, no, you’re right. I didn’t know all of you in college, not like I do now. Back then, I only knew what you allowed me to know. And I know that’s my fault, too.”

A question flickers in her eyes, so I answer, “Your friend Joely came to see me yesterday.” I see a multitude of emotions cross her face, one of them worry.

“What did she say to you?”

“Things I needed to hear. And some things that you should have told me.”

“Such as?”

“How you had feelings for me in college. How I hurt you on numerous occasions because I was a stupid, immature kid. I’m sorry for Tori and Hannah”—she winces, and I feel sick—“and for the shitty things I did and said.”

Her expression shuts down. “I don’t want to go over the past.”

“We need to go over the past,” I tell her. “All these years, I thought you hated me back in college. I thought you were judgmental, but that wasn’t the case, was it? You were just protecting yourself.”

She nods her head.

“Talk to me,” I say gently.

She closes her eyes, like she can’t look at me and say the words. “I had a crush on you back then.” She opens her eyes but doesn’t look at me. “And, of course, seeing you with Tori hurt, but I can’t blame you for that because you didn’t know how I felt. But you said…” Her lip trembles.

“I never thought you were fat, babe.”

She winces, and I want to go back in time and punch the idiot kid that I was in the face. “I know what I said, and it was a dickish, stupid thing to say. I was a dumb kid, and I hurt the one person who never deserved to be hurt.”

“But it wasn’t just that. You stood by while your friends said mean things about me, and you never once said anything to stop them.”

“I hate that I did that. I hate that I don’t even remember. I can’t change the past. All I can do is try to make up for it and apologize for my dickish behavior back then…and now.”

“You slept with my friend Hannah.”

“I know.” I scrub my hands over my face.

“I know you had no clue how I felt about you in college, but I always felt invisible to you, and I put that down to you thinking that…I wasn’t good enough for you. And I still feel the same.”

“Fuck no.”

I’m off the sofa, kneeling at her feet, grabbing hold of her hands. She doesn’t hold mine back, but she doesn’t push me away either, so I take that as a good thing.

“I’m not good enough for you. I wasn’t back then. And I’m not now. But I’m selfish enough to tell you that I’m in love with you. I fucking love you, Morgan, and I need you.”

Tears are glistening in her eyes, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, so I keep going.

“I am madly and crazy in love with you, and I need you to forgive me because I don’t know how to get through another day without you.”

She’s not saying anything, and I’ve never been so afraid in my whole life.

“Morgan?”

“You hurt me. And I’m not just talking about the past. That’s over and done. The moment I let you kiss me in Thailand, I decided it was time to let all of that go. I thought you’d changed. That’s why I let myself fall for you again. But, that last day in my office…the things you said…”

“I’m so sorry,” I beg. “So fucking sorry.” Panic is filling my chest, and I’m ashamed to admit there are tears in my eyes.

“You thought I was capable of betraying you like that.”

“I reacted badly. I know.”

“That’s an understatement. What you said…” Her eyes fill with tears, and I hate that I’m the one who put them there. “I don’t think I can trust you with my feelings anymore.”

She slips her hands from mine.

The panic inside me fills to full-blown fear. “Please, baby. I fucked up, and I’m so sorry. Just don’t throw us away.”

“I didn’t. You did. A couple of days ago.”

I’ve lost her. And I don’t know what to do.

“Please, babe. I made a mistake then. I’ve made too many mistakes when it comes to you. But I’m willing to do anything to fix things between us. I just…I need you. The company needs you. Neither of us will survive without you.”

She closes her eyes and blows out a breath. “Wilder…I can’t come back to work…not now.”

Because of me.

“The company’s yours.”

“What?” Her eyes pop open.

At first, I’m shocked, too, that I said it. But then it’s suddenly so clear. I know it’s the right thing to do. The way to show her that I’m sorry and how much she means to me is to give her the one thing that has always meant the most to me. Because, when I compare the two—Morgan and the business—there is no comparison. She wins out every time.

“The company is yours. You can run it alone as CEO.”

“Wilder…no. Why would you do that?”

“Because I love you. Because the company needs you. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to Under Her. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me. I know I fucked us up, but I won’t be the reason you walk away from the company. You’re amazing at your job. Look at how much you’ve done in such a short time.”

“And look what happened. The deal went south.”

“But it can be fixed. I know it can. And, if anyone can sort it out, it’s you.”

She bites her lip and stares past me. The silence that hangs between us is killing me.

“Maybe…but I don’t want to do it alone,” she says quietly.

And my heart stops.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying”—she blows out a breath—“that you messed up. But so have I.” Her eyes come to mine. “I never told you back in college how I felt. Or that you hurt me. I never gave you the chance to apologize or make it right. I just shut down on you.”

“If I hadn’t said or done those things, then—”

She silences me with her fingers to my lips. “I know. But it’s in the past. I want it to stay there. And, the other day…you screwed up big time, but I can understand why you thought it was me. You should have trusted me at my word, but I understand why you jumped to the wrong conclusion.”

I take hold of her hand and slip her fingers across my lips. “So, you forgive me?”

She shrugs. “I guess…but you’ve got some serious making up to do, Cross.”

“Are we talking making up to do as co-CEOs or…me as your boyfriend?”

She pauses a moment, lips pursed, like she’s thinking it over. Then, she smiles. “Both,” she says.

And my heart soars.

I take her face in my hands and stare into her eyes. “You won’t regret this. I swear.”

“I’d better not. This is your last chance, Wilder.”

And I can’t wait a second longer. I kiss her.

She immediately kisses me back, and the feeling is amazing. I never want to come close to losing her ever again.

“I love you,” I say against her lips. “So fucking much.”

“I love you, too,” she whispers.

I jerk my head back. “You do?”

She smiles. “Of course I do, dummy.”

A big smile spreads across my face. “So, this making up I’ve got to do…I’m thinking I should get started on the boyfriend part of it.”

Fire ignites in her eyes. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah.” I pick her up, making her squeal, and I carry her to her bed and drop her on it.

Then, I climb on top of her and get to work on making it up to my girl.