Not My Romeo (The Game Changers #1)(99)

A long exhalation comes from him. “I’m sorry, Elena. I freaked out over Marvin and assumed you were guilty. I was wrong.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see him scrubbing a hand through his hair.

“I lost my head. Does that mean I’ve lost you too?”

I meet his gaze, seeing worry mingled with fear in his tawny eyes. “You pushed me away from you like it was nothing.”

His throat bobs. “It was pure unadulterated fear. Deep inside me, in a part I hadn’t acknowledged yet, I’d already given my heart away to you, only to hear that conversation and think everything was blowing up in my face. All my protective instincts flared up. To be made a fool of again? To believe that a woman loved me? It felt ridiculous. Women who love me usually end up hurting me in some way.”

“I’d never hurt you intentionally.”

“I know. And now I screwed us all up.”

I don’t want us to be screwed up. I want us to be . . .

He flashes a brief sad smile, sighing as he looks away. “I gave you my heart tonight in front of everyone. It felt fucking amazing.”

My stomach flutters.

“I’m also sorry that Lawrence came to see you and pissed you off.” Regret lingers in the tones of his voice. “I did so much wrong, and it’s my own damn fault for being . . . broken since the moment we met.”

I sigh. “He’s banned from the Daisy Public Library. Might put his face on a wanted poster.”

“In his defense, he really does put me first.”

I nod, circling back to something he said before. “You’re not broken, Jack. Everyone has baggage they bring to a relationship, but you have to take a leap of faith.”

He reaches in his front pants pocket and pulls out something and places something small and cold in my hand.

“What is this?” I hold it up in the light of the moon, taking in the metal object.

“My leap of faith. Key to my apartment. I had it made for you after I left Sophia, after she said I couldn’t trust you. I was just waiting for the right time to give it to you, to get my nerve up . . .” His voice softens. “I meant it as a symbol that I wanted more with you, but then I’d get nervous and not bring it up. I felt so unsure. I’ve never loved anyone. I’m stupid.” He sighs.

There’s a long silence as we stare at each other.

“What are you thinking?” he asks.

I lick my lips. “I think I’m having a revelation.”

“Yeah?” I see hope on his face.

He does love me. Oh, he told me onstage in front of everyone, but it wasn’t until this moment that I let the feeling sink in. Let myself believe it. A man like him, who doesn’t trust, was on the cusp of giving me a key, which to some may seem rather meaningless, but to him, it’s the equivalent of a declaration.

He sighs, reaching out to trace the curve of my face. “Will you forgive me, Elena?”

I gaze at him, at the intensity of him, at the man who’s been hurt so many times by people. And he’s never loved a girl.

“Forgive me for pushing you away. Forgive me for not going to Sunday lunches. Forgive me for being broken.”

Tears prick my eyes. “My nana used to say that broken people love the hardest because they appreciate the things that make their heart beat. Do I make your heart beat?”

He nods, his lashes fluttering as he comes closer, then pauses, looking uncertain. “God, Elena. I’m afraid you’re going to push me away. I know I’m not perfect, that I need to work on this, but I can’t let go of you. I spent two wretched nights without you. I never want to be this . . . sick again. I love you, Elena. So much. I don’t even know how to describe it.”

My breath hitches.

He says, “I want to wake up next to you every day and see what life throws at us. Will you try?”

Will I try? I’d walk over hot coals for him.

The elation that’s been growing in my chest widens. My heart soars. “I love you, Jack. You’re worth everything.”

A smile grows, a bemused and awed expression on his face. “Thank God.” He leans in and kisses me softly, his tongue sweeping against mine. “I’m not perfect,” he breathes into my neck a few minutes later. “I can’t win a Super Bowl to save my life, I get flustered around new people, I watch too many K-dramas, and your pig hates me. I don’t have much to offer.”

I laugh, feeling giddy. “Romeo does not hate you. Dislike, maybe. And I kind of like your Porsche.”

He presses a soft kiss to my neck. “It’s yours.”

“I was joking!” I laugh as he stares deep into my eyes.

He holds my face steady with his fingertips. “I’ve never had this, Elena. I’ve never been with someone I couldn’t live without. I talked about fate before, and the more I dwell on it, it just makes sense that maybe there is a reason for everything.”

“What do you mean?”

“That sometimes, fate gives you a bad game, but in the end destiny straightens it out. And you win. You and I are going to win.” He gazes down at me, and I suck in a sharp breath, seeing a man who loves me with all he is.

He brushes his thumb over my bottom lip. “Even if that fate is nonsense, I would have found you. Somehow. Maybe at a bookstore. Maybe when I had a flat tire in Daisy in front of your house when I came to visit Timmy—I don’t know. We were always meant to be. There are too many things that brought us together. If destiny brought us together, that means she’ll fight to keep us together.”