“Do I tell him?”
She shrugs one shoulder. “I think there is a rule written somewhere that I should tell you to avoid being honest about your feelings so that you don’t scare him off. I say you do what you need to do. If you are in love with him and want him to know—” She shrugs again. “—tell him how you feel.” She leans closer to me and takes my hand. “I do think you should give this a little more time. I know you don’t have a lot of experience in the relationship department, and I don’t want you to confuse love with sex, because they are completely separate.”
I swallow over the lump that has suddenly formed in my throat. Is that it? Am I feeling this connected to him because we’ve had sex? When I’ve had sex in the past, I never felt like I do now, but then again, I’ve never been chased through the woods by a madman before. Who knows if everything that’s happened isn’t messing with my head, making me feel things I don’t actually feel.
“You’re right. I need to give it time before I say anything to him.”
“Oh, Lord,” Brie says, getting up and coming to stand directly in front of me. “Please tell me you are not doubting that man and your feelings?”
“I’m taking your advice,” I reply, and she suddenly wraps her hands around my biceps and begins to shake me hard. “What the heck are you doing?” I shout as I try to get away from her.
“I’m hoping to shake some damn sense into your head. I didn’t tell you to start doubting him. I said you need to give this time so you know it’s love and not just the fact that you’re finally with a good guy and getting some really good sex.”
“I know that.” I finally pull free from her hold and blow my hair out of my face. “Sheesh, you’re crazy.” I smooth out my hair.
“I’m not letting you push him away.”
“Brie, I might be messed up from my childhood, but I’m not dumb. I know that Cobi is not just a good man, but probably one of the best there is out there.” I rest my hands on my hips and pull in a breath. “I’m not sure why he wants me. I don’t know that I will ever figure it out, but I’m not going to be the one to convince him that he doesn’t, because believe me, I have tried. Right now, all I know is I’m taking one day with him at a time, and settling into us being together.” She continues to stare at me, but now with wide eyes. “He has made it clear more than once that who my family is doesn’t matter to him, that only how he feels about me matters.” I drag in a shaky breath. “I believe him when he says that. And tomorrow I’m probably meeting his parents, and you know me well enough to know that something like that would not happen no matter how into a guy I was before now.”
“You really do love him.”
“I don’t know. Like you pointed out, this could just be really amazing sex and a fucked up situation making me think I feel things I don’t.”
“No, you’re in love.”
“Brie.”
“Okay, I’ll shut up, but I just want to say I love him for you, Hadley.” Her arms wrap around me. “You are not wrong; he’s a good man, one of the very few left in the world, and I love the way he’s taking care of you. You deserve to have someone take care of you for once.”
“Don’t make me cry.”
“As if I could.” She laughs then lets me go. “Now I need a drink, we need to talk about wedding crap, and then we need to find a time to get our guys together for dinner,” she says as the doorbell rings, and Maxim barks.
“Well, you get your drink while I get dinner, and then we will figure out the rest,” I say before I head down to the front door. I take dinner from the driver who informs me everything has already been taken care of, including the tip. I take the bag to the kitchen with my mind on Cobi and the little ways he finds to take care of me even when he’s not around. Not really thinking about what I’m doing, I drop the bag of food on the counter then take my cell phone with me to the bedroom and shut the door.
I press the ‘Dial’ button on Cobi’s number and put my phone to my ear.
“Everything okay, baby?” he answers softly before the second ring, and I lean back against the wall, closing my eyes and not speaking, just letting his gentle tone wash through me and the cracks in my heart, filling them up. “Hadley?” The one word is concerned and I open my eyes.