Page 128 of Pinch of Love

I debated what to say. I didn’t want to sound desperate or unsympathetic.

Or like a jerk.

Like,What about me?

“You know what’s waiting for you back there.” I rubbed my hands through my hair. “You’ve been through a ton of trauma, and I get it.”

Her expression almost fell. “You do?”

I cupped my hands together and pretended to blow in them when all I wanted to do was hide the sniffle that was trying to betray me. “I don’t want to force you to stay somewhere you don’t love, with people you don’t know, or with the uncertainty that can’t be predicted.”

“But...” She stopped herself and nodded. “No, you’re right.”

I laughed and shook my head. “Well, it wasn’t my idea. I’d have you stay for the rest of fall if I could.”

“Really?” Her eyes stayed on mine.

“Yeah, but I get it. We both knew this could happen. It’s why staying a distraction would have been a better idea.” I pushed my legs out and put my hands behind the back of my head, feeling my arms stretch. “And once again, Rob is effing up our time together.”

“I hadn’t really thought of it that way,” she said softly.

“It is what is.” I cleared my throat and stood.

Never in a million years did I think I’d wake up this morning and be rejected by the one woman I’d fallen in love with.

Just looking at her made me want to stomp and shout that she needed to stay and that I was falling in love. That I needed her. That I saw a future.

Our future.

But it wasn’t just about me.

If she wasn’t seeing it, feeling it, what could I do?

I moved my hand to my temple and pressed it hard while I stared at the lawn.

This seriously couldn’t be happening, but it was.

“I mean it when I say to take everything out of the deposit,” she told me, standing.

“Oh, is that it?” I smiled, scoffing. “We’re back to business?”

“I don’t know what else to say?”

I rocked back on my heels and dug both hands into my pockets. “Really? Nothing comes to mind?” I couldn’t hide the gruffness from my voice.

But really?

Couldn’t she come up with anything else?

“I’ve enjoyed my time here.” She stood and put her hand on my chest for a brief second. “And most of that is because of you.”

“But I’m not enough.”

She drew in a sharp breath. “It’s not like that.”

I nodded and looked over her shoulders toward the empty lake. The temperatures were dropping quickly.

“No, it actually is.” I scratched my chin and brought my eyes back to hers.