Page 198 of That Rush

“I see that.”

“Then tell me what I’m missing. I made space for you here, and you’re looking at me like I did something to you.”

“You did.” Her voice catches. “I accepted a key. I left a few things. You treated that like I said yes to everything after it.”

“I’m not demanding everything tonight.”

“You already built it.”

“Shelves and a closet aren’t a life sentence.”

“Then why are you this upset that I haven’t agreed to them?”

The fear I’ve tried to plan away claws up my throat. Every time Paige protects an exit, I wonder if she already sees herself using it.

“Why do you need to keep one foot outside this?”

Her arms fall. “My cabin is my home. Stop calling it an exit.”

“And this?” I gesture toward the lit windows and the house holding pieces of her life. The next words tear out before I can steady them. “What am I, Paige?”

Pain crosses her face. “You’re the man I love.”

“You say you might want to marry me someday. You might want to wake up beside me. What are we building, Paige? What is any of this if you won’t give me an answer?”

She swallows. “I’m giving you the only answer I have right now.”

“I don’t know isn’t enough to build on.”

The words leave my mouth, and Paige goes still.

“There,” she says, her voice flat. “That’s the problem.”

“Wanting a future with you is a problem?”

“No.” She shakes her head. “You already decided what it looks like. Every time I don’t catch up fast enough, you act like I’m delaying us.”

“I’m trying to build a life with you because I love you.”

Her gaze stays on mine, steady despite the pain I put there.

“You have made decisions about me and called the result love.”

Chapter 28

Paige

Aiden’s expression tightens. He turns, opens the front door, and switches on the living room lamp. The click echoes, too loud in a house without Josie. The television is dark, and no little voice calls from another room. The staircase at the edge of the living room leads toward every drawer, hanger, and shelf he cleared for me.

“Come inside.”

I stay on the porch. “Are you asking?”

His jaw shifts. “Will you come inside so we can finish this?”

“Yes.”

I step past him. Aiden closes the door and follows me into the living room. I remain on my feet. He crosses to the far side of the couch, planting both hands on the back. Every time he reached for me tonight, I moved away. Now he keeps the furniture between us like a barricade.