Page 106 of When We Were Young

“It’s only fair to tell you I’ve felt broken for a long time. I imagine that could get heavy for someone to put up with and⁠—”

“That’s enough.” There’s an edge to her voice.

My heart races, and my head drops toward my chest. This is going to hurt like hell this time.

“Holden, look at me.” I hesitate, wanting to put off seeing the look on her face. “Please…”

I suck in a breath and lift my head. What I see surprises me.

“You’re not broken.” She takes my hand and squeezes it for a second. “I didn’t see you as broken then, and I don’t now, either.”

Chapter Thirty-Six

Lizzie

Igasp as a massive shiver runs through me. I suspect it’s a combination of the chill in the fall night air, the conversation, and being this close to him.

Alone.

“You’re cold.” He frowns. “We should get you home and⁠—”

“No!” A wave of embarrassment at my intense protest passes over me. “Please, not yet. I’m okay.”

Holden peers at me as if he’s studying me. He lifts his arm, an invitation to move closer to him. Though a part of me is terrified to open this door, to hope that we could really have our chance, the rest of me can’t resist, and I scoot into the offered space.

Once I tuck myself under his arm, his body relaxes, and I allow myself to melt into him. We stay like that for a while, not needing to fill the space with words.

After a few minutes, Holden speaks.

“Are you okay?” His voice is soft, yet laden with concern.

I realize that, other than being nestled into his side, I’ve not given him any significant sign of where we stand after all that he shared. I’ve not really said how the information he’s shared with me will affect what happens with us moving forward.

I pull away from him and twist my body until I can clearly see his expression. Worry etches across his face, his eyes questioning.

“It’s not as bad as I was afraid it would be. I felt scared you were going to tell me you were a womanizer, so you’ve relieved me on that front. But I don’t like how it made me feel to think about you with someone else. Which is totally hypocritical because I was with⁠—”

Shoot. What is wrong with me? I don’t want to talk about having sex with Landon when I snuggle up with Holden. Especially not at a time that feels so raw and fragile.

“Fuuuck,” Holden says. He pushes the heels of his hands against his eyes. “I really wanted to pretend you hadn’t been with him physically. I know I have no right, but it makes me feel murderous to think of that bastard putting his hands on you.”

We can’t go down that path. We need to keep the people from our pasts there.

In a moment of uncharacteristic boldness, I climb onto his lap, straddling him. He freezes. His hands drop from his eyes, and his heated gaze focuses on me. I swallow past the lump in my throat and cup his face in my hands, staring into his eyes.

“We can’t do that—dwell on those things. We have to move forward and put the past behind us if there’s any hope we could...”

He grasps my waist with his large hands and pulls me closer until only inches separate us.

“Any hope we could what?” he asks. His breathing is shallow.

Maybe I’m not the only one who’s a bundle of nerves. I can see in his eyes that he needs my words. He needs me to choose him.

“Hope that we can forgive ourselves and each other for the hurt we both caused when we were young and give us the second chance it sounds like we both want.”

“You’re sure that’s what you want?” he asks.

I decide to be brave, and I close the distance between us and barely touch my lips to his.