okay with it, but we can’t be together. I’m sorry about everything. I should have never—”
“I get it! You regret having sex with me.” She cringed when pain shot through her head and reached for her purse to dig out some ibuprofen.
“Stop saying that,” he said.
“Forget it. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m tired of this trip. I’m tired of fighting with you over us, and I’m just...tired. Period.” She placed a travel pillow behind her neck and rested her head against it. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe we weren’t meant to be. I can’t spend my life trying to convince you that we belong together. You either want to be with me or you don’t.”
“It’s not that easy.”
“Yes. It is.” She wiggled until she was comfortable enough to sleep. “I’m going to take a nap now. Don’t worry. When we get back, I’ll pretend none of this ever happened.”
“I don’t want you to pretend it never happened. I can’t pretend it never happened. It was—”
“Tough. You know how I feel about you. I’m done trying. I’m...done. I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” She fought to keep her voice from shaking, not wanting him to hear how much all of this was hurting her.
She’d never be able to forget making love with him. And she was certain she’d never stop loving him, but damn it. She shouldn’t have to convince the man she loved that they belonged together. If he loved her, he’d be with her. She couldn’t torture herself over him any longer. She understood his guilt, understood that he thought he wasn’t good at relationships, but her understanding had its limits.
She closed her eyes. Breathing deep, she willed the anxiety building in her chest to calm and fought back the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. Finally, coming to terms that she and Landon may never be together, her heart thumped hard against her ribs leaving behind an ache in her chest. She’d never given up, never lost hope, but she was beginning to realize that maybe her hope and tenacity wasn’t enough for the both of them.
* * * *
L andon drove the last few hours of the way in a completely silent cab. He glanced at Krista again. He’d be willing to bet that she hadn’t been asleep the whole ride. She’d most likely been pretending for a good while now to avoid conversation with him. He couldn’t blame her. That’s because I fucked everything up.
When he’d seen Chip and Dave assaulting her in the back of the diner, he’d wanted nothing more than to kill them. Though he knew he could take them both, beat their asses, he hadn’t wanted to risk one of them hurting Krista. Shifting and catching them by surprise had been the best chance for getting Krista out of her predicament unscathed. Fortunately, things had gone as planned, and the two assholes would rot behind bars for the rest of their lives.
That didn’t stop him from facing the real possibility of losing Krista had things not gone so well. That imagined scenario had brought into perspective the guilt over his mother’s death and not being there for Nyssa. He almost hadn’t been there when Krista needed him most. Determined to give her the time she’d wanted to cool off after their disagreement in the repair shop, he’d nearly been too late.
A shudder shook him when he thought about what he would have found behind that diner had he waited even twenty minutes more before going after her. She was strong and had handled herself admirably with two men threatening her. Brady had taught her well, but her skills had not been much of a match for the men’s strength once they had a hold of her. She’d ended up with a split lip, bruised head, and he’d ended up with not only more guilt, but regret for not killing the two bastards for touching her.
If there hadn’t been a choice, he wouldn’t have thought twice about crushing Dave’s and Chip’s throats with his powerful jaws. He could almost feel the way their windpipes
“I get it! You regret having sex with me.” She cringed when pain shot through her head and reached for her purse to dig out some ibuprofen.
“Stop saying that,” he said.
“Forget it. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m tired of this trip. I’m tired of fighting with you over us, and I’m just...tired. Period.” She placed a travel pillow behind her neck and rested her head against it. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe we weren’t meant to be. I can’t spend my life trying to convince you that we belong together. You either want to be with me or you don’t.”
“It’s not that easy.”
“Yes. It is.” She wiggled until she was comfortable enough to sleep. “I’m going to take a nap now. Don’t worry. When we get back, I’ll pretend none of this ever happened.”
“I don’t want you to pretend it never happened. I can’t pretend it never happened. It was—”
“Tough. You know how I feel about you. I’m done trying. I’m...done. I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” She fought to keep her voice from shaking, not wanting him to hear how much all of this was hurting her.
She’d never be able to forget making love with him. And she was certain she’d never stop loving him, but damn it. She shouldn’t have to convince the man she loved that they belonged together. If he loved her, he’d be with her. She couldn’t torture herself over him any longer. She understood his guilt, understood that he thought he wasn’t good at relationships, but her understanding had its limits.
She closed her eyes. Breathing deep, she willed the anxiety building in her chest to calm and fought back the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. Finally, coming to terms that she and Landon may never be together, her heart thumped hard against her ribs leaving behind an ache in her chest. She’d never given up, never lost hope, but she was beginning to realize that maybe her hope and tenacity wasn’t enough for the both of them.
* * * *
L andon drove the last few hours of the way in a completely silent cab. He glanced at Krista again. He’d be willing to bet that she hadn’t been asleep the whole ride. She’d most likely been pretending for a good while now to avoid conversation with him. He couldn’t blame her. That’s because I fucked everything up.
When he’d seen Chip and Dave assaulting her in the back of the diner, he’d wanted nothing more than to kill them. Though he knew he could take them both, beat their asses, he hadn’t wanted to risk one of them hurting Krista. Shifting and catching them by surprise had been the best chance for getting Krista out of her predicament unscathed. Fortunately, things had gone as planned, and the two assholes would rot behind bars for the rest of their lives.
That didn’t stop him from facing the real possibility of losing Krista had things not gone so well. That imagined scenario had brought into perspective the guilt over his mother’s death and not being there for Nyssa. He almost hadn’t been there when Krista needed him most. Determined to give her the time she’d wanted to cool off after their disagreement in the repair shop, he’d nearly been too late.
A shudder shook him when he thought about what he would have found behind that diner had he waited even twenty minutes more before going after her. She was strong and had handled herself admirably with two men threatening her. Brady had taught her well, but her skills had not been much of a match for the men’s strength once they had a hold of her. She’d ended up with a split lip, bruised head, and he’d ended up with not only more guilt, but regret for not killing the two bastards for touching her.
If there hadn’t been a choice, he wouldn’t have thought twice about crushing Dave’s and Chip’s throats with his powerful jaws. He could almost feel the way their windpipes
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