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  He sure knew how to say things to make me feel things that I shouldn’t be feeling.

  “When you came down those stairs today, I thought I was going to lose my shit,” he murmured. “Black dress. Bare feet.”

  I didn’t say anything still, wondering if he was trying to accomplish something with the words he was saying.

  “When you sent me your hair, I thought I was going to lose my shit then, too,” he said softly. “But I kind of like the short. It’s cute.”

  I licked my lips, eyes staying directly in front of me.

  “Knew why you did it,” he continued. “You were pissed. You wanted to hurt me like I hurt you.”

  He had no fuckin’ clue.

  That was the thing.

  He had no clue how badly he’d hurt me.

  In fact, if he had, he wouldn’t be here right now. He wouldn’t be taking me home because he would know how much this meant to me. How much I still wanted him back.

  How, after nine months without him, I still dreamed about him every night. I still reached for him every morning.

  We might not have gotten to do all those things that usual couples do—i.e., sex, sleeping over, things like that—but I still yearned for those things.

  I still wanted them so badly that it hurt.

  Him being here right now? It felt like a knife straight to the heart.

  “Some little asshole tried to take it from me once, and I lost my shit on him,” he continued. “Gave him a black eye.”

  I finally turned and stared at Louis.

  “Louis, why did you care?” I asked softly. “What’s it matter if someone took it?”

  He didn’t reply.

  Instead, he parked the car by the side of my house and got out.

  I got out, too.

  I didn’t want him to think that this was a date or anything. Where he used to open my door for me, offer me his arm, and walk me to the front door as if I needed the help to get there.

  Well, I didn’t.

  I didn’t need anything from him.

  What I needed was him to leave and stop confusing me.

  What I got was Louis being Louis and poking his nose into my business even when he wasn’t supposed to care or want to be in it.

  When I went to pass him and head up to my front porch, he caught me by the arm and hauled me back.

  In the high heels I was wearing, I had no choice. It was either go in the direction he wanted or break my ankle.

  I chose not to break my ankle and instead fell into Louis—which secretly was where I wanted to be all along.

  “Why do you do this to me?”

  I didn’t know what he meant.

  At least, I didn’t know what he meant until he kissed me.

  Then I knew exactly what he meant.

  Mouth on mine, he pressed his tongue inside my mouth and licked against mine, shooting sparks of excitement through me with each thrust.

  His fingers tightened on my hips, dragging me closer and closer to his body.

  And his chest? It felt different. Broader. More muscular.

  Before I even realized what I was doing, I was kissing him back. Running my fingers along the muscled torso that I’d longed to touch.

  But just as quickly as the kiss began, it ended.

  And how he ended it made my heart wilt into a tiny little shriveled piece of what it used to be.

  “Nothing has changed.” He panted against my lips. “I still want you. Let’s get a hotel room. Then I can bring you home before your curfew.”

  I pulled back with horror, realizing only just then that despite him feeling me up and kissing me, he didn’t plan to do anything more than what we were doing right then.

  Son of a bitch.

  I pulled myself away with a yank of my head and wiped off my lips with the back of my hand.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I’m not a one-night stand, Louis.” Louis’ eyes narrowed. “And I’m not just some girl you can come home to when you’re on leave. I won’t be waiting next time.”