Page 27 of Forgiveness
“Flux, the fact that you’re opening up to me right now is a huge sign that we can be something other than what we were together last night. You’re manning up, but you’re also being vulnerable with me. I need you to know that I appreciate it, and I get how hard it must be for you.” Maggie didn’t want him to just slip away from her—she wasn’t ready for that, not now … maybe not ever.
Flux flinched as if she’d struck him, but then she watched the mental wheels turn in his head as he digested the magnitude of her words. Therewashope for them. If he could break himself down to her right now, at least work on stripping down his walls like this, then he couldn’t be nearly as bad as he thought he was inside.
“There’s nothing wrong with us being friends and casual sex partners. Neither of us will toe the line and we can keep it all separate. I’m a big girl.”
Flux looked skeptical as he stomped his boots in the dirt and glared in her direction.
Maggie took a step forward as a soft smile brushed across her lips. “Do you really think I would risk breaking one of my hard-fast rules of not getting intimate with anyone I work with if I didn’t trust what we have together? We keep it honest and you double down on the communication instead of hiding from me and we’ll be golden.”
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself of that fact, Duchess?”
Now, it was her turn to flinch and look at the facts he was laying down for them both before she jumped into anything without a parachute.
“If we do this, are we seeing other people?” Maggie asked the question as if his answer didn’t matter. “I think that’s important to figure out.”
The best thing they could do was outline the parameters. As long as she knew her course, she could stay in the lines. That was how it worked with barrel racing and that was how it would work with him.“Know your boundaries.”Her coach’s voice echoed in her head. She’d been hearing that since she was a kid.
Flux’s eyes narrowed, his lips becoming a grim line. “You wanna fuck other people?”
“Do you?” she countered, tilting her head to the side.
“No,” he replied gruffly, the single word portraying a slew of emotions. “I want just you.”
Suddenly Flux’s intentions blazed through his expression, every inch of him telegraphing a masculine sense of possession that made Maggie take a step backward. A warm blush flooded her cheeks and she chewed at the inside of her cheek and crossed her arms. His intense gaze never let up, and she hated showcasing to him exactly what was on her mind.
Polite wasn’t really his thing. To a degree, she appreciated the gruffness. She would never have to wonder where they stood with each other and that alone was refreshing. Still, she wanted nothing more than for the blush blazing across her face to go away. Or she would at least settle for the sudden ability to speak, which had gripped her vocal chords out of nowhere.
“Duchess. You haven’t answered your own question.” Flux licked his lips while his primal intensity made her lungs squeeze tight in her chest.
“No, I don’t plan on seeing anyone else,” she whispered.
“You don’t plan on it or …”
Now he was being an asshole and giving her a hard time, but the teasing brought a grin to her lips as she relished the fact that he was getting back to his old self.
“I’m not seeing anyone else. If that changes, I’ll send you a courtesy text.” Maggie tossed her hair over her shoulder.
