"Thank you." She beamed as the door closed behind us.
Beth was a good few feet ahead of me, making her way toward the pool.
"Slow down!" I called after her.
"Keep up," she called back.
"Can you just, I grabbed her arm, "stop for one damn second?"
She stopped walking and put her sunglasses on. Hell, did that mean she was crying?
"What's wrong with you?"
"I just want to relax in the sun. Is that so much to ask?
"Yes," I snapped. "I mean, no."
"Jace," Beth put her hands on her hips, "what do you want?"
"I want you to stop yelling. I want to stop going to therapy with a senile eighty-six year old with felt pictures. I want my life back, but I want to kiss you more. So that's what I want," I grumbled
"Your life back?"
I grabbed her shoulders and pushed her against the wall. "The second part."
"A kiss?"
"I want more than a kiss, Beth. Don't you get it? I'm trying to protect you. I'm trying to do the right thing. I want you. Don't you see that I want you? Give me a reason not to want you—"
"My cartoon character was She-Ra."
"Huh?"
"I wanted to be a warrior princess."
"That doesn't help."
"I thought it would weird you out?"
"You wearing battle gear and wielding a sword?" I chuckled. "Not even close to helping."
"My most secure childhood memory was when I got second place at the science fair. My mom and dad weren't able to make it, so my grandpa came. He told me that as long as I had a heart to go along with my brain I'd turn out okay. He said hearts and brains shouldn't work separate but together." Her eyes glistened with tears. "He said I was smart, but he kissed me on the cheek and said what was more important is that he loved my heart."
I reached for her hand.
"He, uh, died the following day. Stroke."
I pulled her into my arms and kissed her head.
"And I hate vegetables." Her voice was muffled against my chest. "If I had to be one, I'd ask to be put in vegetable soup so I'd suffer a veggie death. I hate green things. I know I'm supposed to like them. I know I'm supposed to be super-healthy, but damn it, Jace, sometimes I just want a cookie!"
"I think I can do that."
"Really?" She stepped away and wiped underneath her eyes.
"Yeah." I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and kissed her forehead again. "I'll buy you as many cookies as you want. And if your plan was to get me to fall just a little bit more for you, you succeeded."
"Oh yeah?" Beth sniffled, "Why's that?"