Someone to Love(99)

Cruise dips in. “What are you talking about?”

“I heard you!” It roars from the deepest part of me. Cruise opened the Pandora’s box of grief I sealed off all my pain in, and now I’ve unleashed it like a missile right at the person I thought I loved—that I thought loved me.

“I would never say those things, let alone think them.” His features blink back with surprise, and his mouth rounds out as if he were reliving a memory. I caught him red-handed, and he knew it. “Are you talking about a conversation I had with my dad?” His head ticks back a notch.

“Yes. I was going to surprise you. I was coming to collect my morning kiss.” My voice breaks. “I heard you say—you said, you never loved me.” And there it is, the wound reopened, the acid poured in because the admission came from my own lips this time.

“Kenny…” His face contorts in pain. “I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about my ex-girlfriend, Blair.” His dimples blink like sirens trying to alert me to the severity of the situation. “Her mom called and wanted me to give it another try. I was just venting to my dad about it.”

I glance past him and pick up on the hurt on her face—the incredible heartbreak we were passing like a baton. But she relished in my misery. She wanted Cruise back and tried to drive herself between us. She pitted me against him, and I was too quick to jump to conclusions.

“Blair and I were together for years.” He steps into me, and I want to surrender to him. The sweet scent of his cologne begs for me to do it. “We dated. She never wanted to touch me. She said she wanted to save herself for marriage, and I respected that. I held out,” he says it low almost reluctant to admit it. “She cheated on me, apparently with a number of guys, and last summer I found out about it. Kenny—when I asked Blair to marry me, she never said yes. And I only asked because I thought that was the next logical step in our relationship. After that, I ended up hitting on everything that moved. It wasn’t until I met you that I realized two things.” He steps into me and picks up my hands. “One—that breaking it off with Blair was a very good thing. I never really loved her. And two, I wish could have held out a little longer and saved it all for you. I love you, Kendall. I’ll love you forever.”

My heart thumps wild in my chest at the prospect of Cruise wishing he had waited for me—loving me forever.

“I have a confession. There is one thing I was keeping from you.” I take a step in until we’re a breath away. “When my stepfather told me those lies about myself all those years ago, I wasn’t necessarily shutting out guys because I was afraid of turning into some prophesied slut.” I glance down at the floor then sweep over him slowly until our eyes lock. “Deep inside I knew there would be someone special out there, and I only wanted him to have me. When I met you, Cruise—I knew you were that person. I knew it that first night. Remember when you asked if I believed in love at first sight? Deep down, I loved you right then. So, I guess I do believe in love at first sight after all.”

“That makes two of us.” He warms me with a smile that widens without end. “As soon as I laid eyes on you, my thesis went out the window.”

“What exactly is your thesis?”

“The fallacy of love at first sight. Turns out, the only fallacy was my thesis itself. But I won’t be needing it anymore.” Cruise wraps his arms around my waist and pierces me with those eyes that shower me with affection in so many special ways. “Kendall Jordan, will you marry me?”

I can feel the words vibrate through his chest, the deep register of his voice sirens through me like a tuning fork.

“It’s Kenny to you.” I give the curve of a smile. “And yes, I would be honored to spend my life by your side.” I jump up on his hips, and he catches me beneath my knees as our lips crash into one another. Cruise lays his kisses over me with a soulful intensity. This is holy and right and something destined to happen right from the beginning. His tongue sweeps over mine, soft and aching. Cruise cleanses me with the fire from his mouth. This kiss begs forgiveness and thanks me for the start of something new, all at the same time. I can feel his desire growing for me, impeding my right thigh through his jeans, and a moan escapes my throat.

Cruise pulls back and cinches a forlorn smile. “I have something else to tell you.” A sigh depresses from him. It brushes over my neck with a hint of heartache. “I was expelled from Garrison.”

“What?” I let go and nearly fall to the floor but Cruise catches me, dots a kiss over my forehead, easy as breathing.