Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 67144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 336(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 336(@200wpm)___ 269(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
My heart twists in my chest at the emotion—an angry, painful, resolved display visible on Troy’s face. I want to hug him, wrap my arms around his waist, and wipe the loneliness away from his features. But he’s already told me that’s not going to happen. And he’s probably right.
So I don’t.
“I’m sorry you experienced that,” I say softly.
“It made me who I am, I guess.”
“Well, if it matters at all, I think you’re a pretty great guy. You’re highly annoying a lot of the time, and you can be so demanding and bossy.” I wink at him. “But you’re a good man.”
His pace slows as he watches me.
“What?” I ask, laughing. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
Slowly, a smile inches across his cheeks. “I’m not looking at you like anything.”
“Yes, you are.”
He chuckles. “I don’t think anyone has ever told me that before.”
“No one has told you what?”
He stops with his back to the horizon. The golden hour beautifully illuminates his features, and the wind pulls his shirt tight against his body. As attractive as the image is, my favorite part of the picture is not his muscles, shoulders, or chiseled jawline.
It’s his eyes.
The gray is light, almost blue, and they’re lit in a way I’ve never noticed before. Coupled with the soft, almost shy smile he bestows upon me, I’m speechless.
“No one has ever told me I’m a good man,” he says.
“Seriously?”
He shrugs as if he’s embarrassed.
“Troy …” I flinch, finding it hard to believe. “No one has ever told you that? Ever?”
“Never. It’s stupid, and I shouldn’t have said anything because now you’re looking at me like—”
“Hey.”
He stops, startled by my interruption.
My heart tugs in my chest. It’s obviously such a painful point for him. Can he possibly not know how wonderful he is? I’m unsure how this ties into his childhood, but I’m certain it does.
I want to hug him so damn bad, but I’m afraid he’ll pull away.
If he needs the reassurance that he’s not like his parents, I’m happy to give it to him. But I’ll have to give it to him in a way that he won’t shut right down.
I ponder my words carefully.
“I don’t want to inflate your ego or anything, and this actually hurts my ego a bit because I’m about to tell you how great you are, and you refused to kiss me …”
He bites his lip, warning me not to go there.
“You are … really amazing, actually,” I say.
His lip pops free.
“You’re intelligent and loyal. Probably the most loyal person I know,” I say, my voice carrying away on the breeze. “You’re a good friend. You’re honest and kind. You’re brave. You’re selfless … most of the time.”
He chuckles, his cheeks turning a shade of pink.
“I mean, look at you right now,” I say. “You just shelved your entire life and came here to protect a woman you work with because her asshole ex-boyfriend is fucking with her. That’s not mediocre-man stuff, Troy. That’s not even lukewarm-man stuff. That’s great-man stuff, and if no one has ever told you that, then let me be the first.”
The water laps at our ankles, pulling the sand out from around our feet as it recedes. The breeze licks at the edges of our clothes and the ends of my hair. It’s as if Troy and I are in a cocoon, insulated from the outside world. Safe from all harm—physically and emotionally.
“You almost had that right,” he says.
“What do you mean?”
“I shelved my entire life and came here to protect a woman.” He closes the distance between us. “But she’s not just a woman I work with.”
My heart skips a beat as I stare into his eyes. “Is that so?”
“She’s brilliant and hard-working and one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met even though she somehow weaponizes that sometimes.”
I try not to giggle.
“She’s a bit of a pain in the ass, but I find myself looking forward to dealing with her every day,” he says, smiling softly. “She’s strong and fearless … and wildly, ridiculously beautiful.”
I gasp, holding my breath.
“If she wasn’t my co-worker, and I wasn’t on duty, and I wasn’t so fucked up that it would undoubtedly ruin everything between us eventually, I’d shoot my shot and pray that it works.”
As soon as the words leave his mouth, his features harden. It’s as if he said too much, let his guard down too low, and is preparing for a pushback.
Nope. Sorry, Troy. You don’t get to take that back.
I turn toward the house. “Well, it’s a good thing she’s your co-worker, and you’re on duty because if your shot looks anything like it did in the closet this afternoon, it needs some work.”
His gaze snaps to mine, bewildered.
I laugh. “Let’s get back. I need a shower.”
Relief washes across his face, so I wink at him.