Leah Mitchell isn't the same shy, poor girl anymore. Now a college student, she is enjoying her life in the city and the freedom she longed for. She works hard and knows her worth. She has it all, but her heart aches for the only person from her pas...
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I've reread the last letter, the one Brian was holding in his hand, at least ten times. When I lift my eyes off the page and look around, he's not here. He decided to give me privacy. That, or the nerves took the better of him. Probably it's the latter.
I put all the letters back into the shoebox and stroll toward the garage. It's open, and Brian is sitting on the bench with his hands in his hair and his head hanging low.
I make my way inside and put the box on the shelf.
Brian's head snaps up. His eyes roam my face, looking for answers.
"You lied to me, O'Brien," I say. "I feel cheated on."
He scrunches up his brows.
"Yes, you lied. You're not a bad boy."
"Fuck, Kitten," he mumbles, chuckling lightly. "Did you read...um...everything?"
I nod. "Every single one, more than once."
Brian swallows and says nothing. Somehow, I know that the question he wants to ask is, What now?
The truth is, I have no idea.
I walk up to him, fighting the weakness in my knees. Brian's hazel eyes don't stray from mine. He watches and waits right until I'm standing in front of him.
He leans forward, but I don't let him move and keep him still, placing my hands on his shoulders.
And then, I bend my head down and kiss him.
Brian's hesitation spurs me on. I press my mouth to his and deepen the kiss, running the tip of my tongue along his bottom lip.
A groan rumbles deep in his chest, and Brian's lips part. He pulls me toward him, wrapping his arms around my waist, and I move my hands up until I can bury my fingers in his dark hair.
Everything disappears but us. Brian takes over, slipping his tongue into my mouth and rubbing it against mine. His grip on me is so tight his heat trespasses my dress and seeps into my pores. I moan when he sucks on my tongue and tug at his hair.
Brian breaks the kiss, pressing his forehead to mine. "Wait, Kitten."
I let out a shaky breath. "Why?"
"Because I can't. I need to...need to know what this is."
I caress Brian's dark hair, thinking of an answer.
He changed. I saw it even before I read those letters he was too ashamed to show me. He did change, but the parts of him I love are still the same.
He might not be perfect, but neither am I. The time we spent apart surely taught us something. I'm not the same girl I used to be.
I could blame Brian for leaving yet again and hoard every ounce of pain and every ugly feeling inside me. But then, I would be repeating my mom's story. I would risk becoming someone bitter and miserable, choosing my pride over my feelings and spending years thinking about the what-ifs.
