Close to You

You’re
a man, so my sister says it’s a given. You’re going to see her
now?”
    “ I have to convince her to
give me another chance.”
    “ What’s the
address?”
    “ Why?” he asked
suspiciously.
    “ You’re going to need a
wing man. Someone to vouch for you, to assure her you aren’t
usually an asshole. What did you do, by the way?”
    “ I’ll tell you later.” He
looked at the coffeehouse. “But if you want to support me, you need
to get here fast.”
    “ Be there in five,” Rick
said after he got the address.
    Nodding, Treat ended the call and
slipped the phone back into his pocket. Close enough to look into
the window of Grounds for Thought, he saw her smiling at her friend
Olivia. But even at this distance he could see her inner light was
dimmed.
    He’d let that happen.
    Never again.
    He pushed open the door and walked
in.
    The chill was immediate, mostly from
Eve. Olivia just watched him with pity.
    “ You’re banned from this
coffee shop,” Eve said in almost a growl as he approached the
register.
    He told himself that her being so
angry was a good thing. It meant she cared, and if the level of her
animosity was any indication, she cared a lot. “I have just one
thing to say.”
    She crossed her arms, as thought
cutting herself off from him. “I don’t want to hear it.”
    “ I do,” Olivia said
brightly, facing him.
    He shook his head. “You’re enjoying
this too much.”
    “ Someone has
to.”
    Treat turned to Eve. The words stuck
in his throat. She looked so beautiful, he just wanted to take her
in his arms and kiss her and tell her he’d make everything okay. At
one time he would have cursed himself for that—that he felt the
need to take care of someone in that way. But with Eve it was
different. He knew she didn’t need to be taken care of. She was
fine on her own. Taking care of her was a privilege.
    She tapped her foot. “I’m
waiting.”
    He was thankful he couldn’t see her
feet to get distracted by her footwear. “I—”
    The front door opened and Rick rushed
in, out of breath. “What did I miss?”
    “ Nothing so far,” Olivia
replied. “You’re just in time.”
    Rick brightened when he saw her and
went straight to her side. “Hello, gorgeous.”
    “ Hello, yourself.” She
tilted a smile at him. “Are you here for tonight’s
fight?”
    “ I heard it’d be a grudge
match.” He took her hand. “By the way, where have you been all my
life?”
    Treat punched his supposed wingman’s
arm. “Lay off the charm and focus.”
    Rick didn’t take his eyes off Olivia.
“Haven’t you wooed the girl yet?”
    “ No,” he and Eve said at
once. She glared at Treat and added, “And you’re not,
either.”
    Olivia nudged Rick with her shoulder.
“Come on. Let’s give them some special, and you can tell me all
about yourself.”
    “ Excellent.” His best
friend beamed. “That’s my favorite subject.”
    Treat took that as his cue to walk
around the counter.
    “ What are you doing?” Eve
asked, panic in her voice as she backed up.
    Good . As long as he wasn’t the only one feeling it. “I have
something to say to you, and you’re going to listen to
me.”
    “ I’m working,” she
whispered harshly.
    “ Then you better stop
fighting and listen to me.” He cornered her, took her by the waist,
and lifted her onto the countertop so she was eye-level with him.
Bracketing her with his body, he leaned in to get her full
attention. “I only have one thing to say.”
    “ Then just say it,” she
said, sounding more sad than aggressive.
    He tucked her hair behind her ear and
cupped her face. “I’m sorry.”
    She watched him, her gaze
wary. He wanted to take her in his arms, to kiss her and convince
her to take a chance on him. On them .
    Finally she said, “That’s
it?”
    “ That’s what’s at the
bottom of my heart. I only meant to protect you. I should have
trusted you instead.” Caressing her cheek one more time, he let go
and stepped back.
    Woo her , he heard Don tell him.
    Taking a deep breath, he went balls
out. “Actually, what’s really at the bottom of my heart is you,
Eve. I love you.”
    She gaped at him, her beautiful eyes
wide with shock.
    “ It’s true. Deep down you
know I wouldn’t lie to you. My omission was wrong. I’m claiming
that. But you know this is true.”
    It took all his willpower not to crush
her to him and force her to forgive him. “I’ll be here, waiting,
Eve. For as long as it takes.”
    To keep