“I can’t give you what you want, Forrest. I’m not wife material, and I don’t think I will ever be.” I look up at him to see how my words are affecting him.

“I’m not asking you to marry me,” he says, with no reaction on his face.

“No, but that’s what you want. You told me you aren’t looking for a one-night stand, and I’m the poster girl for casual sex.” For the first time in my life, that felt awful to say. Saying out loud that I am a person who is not worthy of more.

“I think I’ve made it fairly clear the last few days that I just want you,” he declares in the sultriest voice, while he takes my cheek in his hand, and I sink into the warmth of it. “No expectations.” His thumb strokes my skin. “And if that means I have to be your one-night stand guy every night for a while until we sort this out, then I’ll be that for you.”

“What if we get there and I still can’t be that woman?” I ask, voicing my greatest fear.

“Then I will walk away, if that’s what you ask me to do.” I can see the wrinkles in his forehead as he frowns and takes in a deep breath, obviously not happy to even think about that scenario.

“I don’t want you to enter into something with me where you might get hurt.” I run my hand up his chest and wrap it around the back of his neck.

“That’s not your risk to take, Harper, it’s mine, and I’m prepared to take it with you.” Determination and strength are written all over his face.

“Maybe I don’t want to put myself in a position to be hurt either.” That has been my mantra since my dad left. I would never let anyone hurt my heart like that again.

“I won’t hurt you, that’s a promise.” Forrest pulls my face closer to his.

“How do I know that, though?” Our lips are so close that we are breathing the same air and sharing the same magnetism that’s drawing us together, one we can’t seem to walk away from, as much as we have both tried.

“You just need to trust me. Say yes, beautiful, just say yes.” His voice is so smooth but almost pleading at the same time.

My head is yelling at me to stand my ground and stay true to my mantra. But my heart wins as I answer the only way I can right now, in this moment of weakness and strength that are mixing together.

“Yes,” I whisper and reach that last inch forward and taste his lips like I have been wanting to do since the last kiss he gave me that hasn’t left my thoughts.