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“No, we won’t. You can run all across this world and I’ll burn it down looking for you. This is fucking real, and I’m done avoiding it.”

I narrow my eyes at him, studying the way he’s looking at me and looking for any sign of deception. “I don’t believe you.”

“Yes, you do. Look in my eyes, Ali. You own me. Can’t you see that?”

I shake my head, pushing away from him, and he releases me. “I thought I saw a lot of things that weren’t true.”

“Don’t do that. I fucking know I screwed up before but I’m being real with you now.”

I look away from him to the door before reaching over and opening it again. “I want you to leave.”

“No.” He seems to grow even taller than he already is, and I can see that he won’t leave until he’s talked to me. Slamming the door, I march over to the couch and sit down, taking a sip of my wine.

“Fine. Talk, then.”

He sits down next to me on the couch, and just as I set my wine back on the coffee table, he grabs my wrist and pulls me into his lap so I’m straddling him. I open my mouth to yell at him when his hand smacks against the side of my ass.

“Stop being a brat and listen.”

I’m stunned speechless as he wraps his arms around my back, holding me firm on his lap. He hesitates for a moment before meeting my eyes and clearing his throat. “When I met you, I was in a fucking bad place.”

Pain floods his eyes, and it’s obvious that this is hard for him to say. Something deep down inside me wants to comfort him. I reach out, placing my hand on his chest, right by his heart, and he lets out a relieved breath.

“My life was so dark and bleak for so long, and I’d accepted that. I’d become accustomed to living my life like that but then Bear got out of the yard and found you.”

He grins, and I fight back a smile of my own as I remember that day.

“You hit me like a ton of bricks the moment I looked into your eyes. You came out of nowhere, and I wasn’t ready for it. I don’t deserve you but I couldn’t stay away from you.”

“Why?” I whisper. He looks away, blowing out a breath before focusing back on me, the pain in his eyes so fresh and so potent that my own chest aches.

“It’s been so long since I’ve done this – been in a relationship. The last time was six years ago, and when it ended, I was destroyed.”

“What happened?” I whisper.

“She died.”

“Oh.” My heart breaks for him, for the pain that I can’t even imagine, and suddenly everything makes sense. I get why he was pushing me away and fighting our connection. “I’m so sorry.”

He blinks in shock. “You’re sorry? For what?”

“If I had known, I never would have…”

He presses a finger over my lips. “You don’t have a single thing to apologize for. I handled this all wrong.”

“No, it’s okay.”

He stops me, shaking his head as he grabs my hand and squeezes it. “You fucking terrify me, Ali. I’m scared shitless of letting you in but I can’t walk away either. You’re mine, and that’s the end of it.”

“Is it now?”

He grins and slides his hand into my hair, pulling me down to him. “Yeah, it is. You can fight, Baby, but we’ll always end up back here. I think you know that, too.”

“It scares me to trust you,” I whisper against his lips, and he pulls back to look in my eyes.

“Why?”

I force a smile to my face and shrug. “Trust issues. My last boyfriend wasn’t all that great.”