Rowan

Chapter 23 | Rowan

He was gone for three days, and Rowan was beyond ready to see him again by the third. He agreed to meet her at her apartment when he got back in town.

She spent most of the day working on little odds and ends jobs that she'd been putting off and managed to stay busy until the knocks sounded against her door that evening.

Stepping inside, he pulled her to his chest, placing his lips against the crook of her neck and inhaling. "God, I missed you," he murmured against her skin.

She had her arms wrapped around his neck and they stood that way for a minute before she pulled back to look at him.

His skin was paler than she remembered, and he had dark circles under his eyes, which were bloodshot. He looked sick.

Dragging a hand gently through his messy hair she frowned up at him. "Is everything okay?" she asked softly, concern spreading through her.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "It is now. Everything will be perfect now."

Still looking at him speculatively, she led him into the kitchen by the hand. "I made you a late dinner; you said you hadn't eaten."

His eyes lit up. "Thank you, baby," he said, taking in the spaghetti and Italian bread she had laid out on the kitchen table. "I'm starving."

"My friends invited us to lunch tomorrow. They want to meet you," she said, smiling at the thought. Emma had practically begged her to bring him along.

Grey eyes watched hers over his cup of coffee. "Is that so?"

Her smiled widened. "Yes," she said. "And I told them you would come."

She pleaded with him with her eyes, silently asking him to go.

He set the mug down, his face taking on a more serious expression. "Of course I'll go," he said. "I wouldn't say no to you." His eyes were warm as this, and she felt her insides tingling with...

Love?

It was like everything halted around her, and she nearly choked on her bread. His eyes widened. "Shit, Rowan, are you alright?"

"Yes," she said, finally able to clear her throat. "Man."

Love.

Of course it was love. A part of her had known for weeks now that she loved him, but the idea just hadn't quite sunk in fully. Because she didn't need to think about it to know that it was true.

I love him.

The thought brought several emotions to the surface. Excitement, because she didn't think she'd ever feel that way about another man. Not so soon after Caden. But also fear, because she didn't think she'd ever feel that way again. And she really didn't know what was going on his mind concerning the two of them. She tried to push the thought to back of her mind, promising herself that she would talk with him about it later.

They finished eating, making small talk and swapping funny stories and then they wound up on the small couch. He wrapped his arms around her, and she rested her head against his chest, letting the comfortable silence wash over them.