Page 60 of Wild Fire

Perhaps this is it.

Perhaps this is where he tells me he can’t do this. That he’s leaving.

But that’s not what he says.

Because the waitress comes to get our orders, and it’s forever until she leaves, I swear.

But when she finally does, Nate is the first to speak, and I nearly choke.

“Do you like me?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t be having lunch with you if—”

“No, I mean, do you like me? Because sometimes I think you do, and sometimes I think I’m losing my mind.”

Before I open my mouth, he continues.

“You’re all I think about. You piss me off, but you also drive me crazy, and you’re hot as hell, no doubt, and—” He runs a hand through his hair, and I note the way his shoulders tense.

He’s nervous, and that both relieves me but also makes me want to reassure him that he doesn’t need to be nervous. Not with me.

“I just… need to know where I stand. With you.”

I swallow and take a deep breath, my heart in my throat. I know this is it. My answer will determine where we go from here.

If I tell him no, he’ll pull back; probably start avoiding me because it’ll be too much, too hard. It would be the perfect excuse for him to leave.

But if I tell him yes…

If I tell him how I feel, there will be no going back, and it will change our relationship. But would that be a bad thing? I don’t know. I suppose there is only one way to find out, though.

“If you are asking if I want you, Nate, the answer is yes.”

His shoulders loosen, and I swear his entire body loosens at those words, and I know precisely how Nate feels.

What he wants. From me.

The question is: am I capable of giving him what he needs? Is he capable of doing the same for me?

“I sense there’s a but,” Nate says, crossing his arms. His gaze finds mine, and he twists his lips petulantly.

“But it’s not that simple,” I say, reaching for my water.

“Why not? I want you.”

Hearing him say those three words nearly takes my breath away.

I want you.

They are solid, unwavering. Bold.

Dominant.

“No, you don’t,” I say bitterly.

His eyes widen, and he opens his mouth, but the words fall out of his too quickly.

“Don’t tell me what I want. You don’t know me.”