Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 104151 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104151 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
“I should get home,” I murmured.
He slid his hand along my hip, up my side to my breast, thumb circling my nipple. “Baby,” he leaned into me, brushing his lips over mine, “you’ve arrived. I’m your new home.”
I closed my eyes as he peppered my face with light kisses. “Kyle, I love you,” I whispered. “And I know you only came after me because some of Josh’s favorite recipes are too complex for you to figure out.”
“Shh … let’s not dwell on the reasons,” he said.
I giggled.
The following morning, I sat in the middle of Kyle’s bed as he dressed.
“I’m scared,” I said. “My dad is going to be so mad.”
He threaded his arms into his long-sleeved T-shirt. “Josh will be with us. And I’ll suggest we pray together before discussing anything.”
“That’s really smart.”
“Thanks.” He sat on the end of the bed and pulled on his socks. “I knew you’d eventually come around and acknowledge my superior intelligence.”
I lifted onto my knees and pressed my chest to his back, arms around his neck. “You were going to let me go. That makes you stupid. I’m quite the catch.”
“And humble. Don’t forget how humble you are.”
I laughed and he leaned back, forcing me onto my butt with his head on my leg. My fingers played in his hair.
“I can’t make this right, Eve,” he sighed.
“Make what right?”
“Us. There is nothing I can say to your father that will make him feel okay about us.”
“That’s because he’s stubborn.”
“No. He’s your father. He’s a man of God. And he’s not entirely wrong to feel the way he does.”
My fingers stilled, my whole body stiffened.
“Look at me, Eve.” Kyle gazed up at me.
I clenched my teeth while looking at him.
“Think about it. Say it in your head. Imagine it’s not us.”
“Say what?” I questioned.
“You are eighteen. I am twenty-eight. That’s ten years. When Josh was born, you were thirteen.”
“What are you saying?” My voice felt tight, each word fighting for composure like the rest of me.
He sat up, rubbing his palms over his face. “I’m saying that what we have at our current ages is an outlier to social norms.”
“I don’t care about social norms. But clearly you do. And if our age is always going to be—”
“Eve!” He stood, stabbing his fingers into his hair and pacing the room a few times. “Take a step back. Can you do that?” He stopped, resting his hands on his hips. “If any other eighteen-year-old girl in this town were involved with a twenty-eight-year-old man, you and all of your friends would be talking about it because it’s not normal. And I’m okay with us not fitting into the norm. It doesn’t change how I feel about you. My ego screams ‘fuck them’ when I think about other people judging us. And that’s why I ran after you yesterday. I don’t care if anyone understands us. But it doesn’t mean that I don’t get it. I can take a step back and see it from their point of view. And that’s called empathy. I think you—we—need to be empathetic to our families. Even if they don’t understand us, we can give them space to change their minds over time as they see us thriving together.”
I slowly nodded. “We can prove them wrong.”
He shook his head. “Maybe take a bigger step back. It’s not about proving anyone wrong. It’s about giving them time to see us as two people in love. And eventually they won’t see a ten-year age difference. They’ll just see love.”
Again, I nodded. “And then I can say I told you so.”
Kyle laughed and I smirked.
“Yes, baby.” He kneeled in front of the bed and pulled my legs, bringing me to the edge. “Then you can gloat.” He wrapped his arms around me, resting his forehead on my chest.
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
PERCY SLEDGE, “WHEN A MAN LOVES A WOMAN”
Kyle
I left Eve with Josh while I trekked through the snow to ask Peter’s permission to take his daughter to Colorado. I knew the answer, but I did it anyway.
“No.” He shook his head as we talked in the living room.
Janet handed me a cup of coffee before sitting next to her husband. She offered me a sad smile as well.
“Well,” I shrugged and took a sip of the coffee, “we’re still leaving tomorrow.”
“Then why on earth are you asking me if you don’t care about my answer?” Peter asked.
“Because it’s the right thing to do.”
He scoffed. “The right thing to do is leave my daughter alone.”
I nodded slowly. “I understand why you feel that way.”
“You don’t,” he argued.
“I do. I see it from your side, but you can’t see it from mine. And that’s okay. But if you could step into my shoes, all you’d see and feel is love. I love Eve beyond words. Every day I will love her, protect her, and move heaven and earth to give her a beautiful life. When she stumbles, I will catch her. If she can’t walk, I will carry her. I’m fully invested in her happiness. My son lights up like the sun when he sees her, and I can’t put into words how that makes me feel.”