Mr. Swoony (The Nest #3)

Chapter 50

Fifty

Eloise

I hear him before he knocks on my bedroom door.

“I need to talk to you, Eloise. Please.”

When I open the door, he looks so depressed that my heart pinches. But I swallow down those people-pleasing habits of mine, leave the door open, and walk back over to the bed.

“If you still want to sleep in your own bed tonight, I understand, but I just want to talk to you. I’m so sorry, Eloise. I was being stupid trying to fix this without involving you. I should’ve showed you the picture and explained the situation the minute I opened that envelope. I should’ve told you what happened in Florida. And I definitely shouldn’t have lied to you today.” He slides out my makeup chair and sits.

I’m on the bed, sitting against the headboard and holding the pillow to my chest. I was just about to take off my makeup, so my hair is thrown into a bun, and I’m in my shorts and cami pajamas.

He opens his mouth but closes it before speaking again. “Over the years in the league, I’ve seen a lot of relationships destroyed by the drama that can come from being a pro hockey player. So many times, a guy would come into the locker room and say I found her, she’s the one. And then either the demands of the season demolish it, or the guy makes a bad decision on the road during a weak moment. Shit, I’ve seen a player sleep with another player’s wife. I didn’t want to chance the outside world ruining things for us, so I tried to keep it a secret. I was wrong.”

“Yes, you were.” I squeeze the pillow a little tighter.

He nods. “I know. And I’ll never do it again.”

I shift to the edge of the bed, wanting to be closer to him when I tell him why I was so angry. “Conor, being with Tristan was like being in the dark all the time. Sometimes I’d show up to a party and hear stories from people about something he’d done three days before that he’d never shared with me. One time at a party, a girl introduced herself to me, and when I said I was Tristan’s fiancée, she said she didn’t even know he was dating anyone let alone engaged.” My fingers twist in the pillowcase from reliving the embarrassment of that moment. “He just lived his life without any concern for me, only what he wanted. That’s not the kind of relationship I want. And I don’t want to be the girlfriend you ‘take care of.’” I put “take care of” in air quotes.

He nods, and I see how upset he is. I want to crawl into his lap and hug him so tightly, but I need to convey to him what I want from this relationship and how important it is to me.

“I want to be a strong presence at your side. You’re going to go through a lot of ups and downs in your career. It’s not an easy road for anyone. We’re going to run into difficulties, and I need to trust that you’ll include me in your decisions. I want you to lean on me just as much as I lean on you.” I get up from the bed, pad over to the dresser, and take out the check I wrote earlier. “Jade told me how much the rent is. This is my half for the time I’ve lived here.” I hold it out to him.

He accepts the check but blows out a breath. “Eloise…”

“No, Conor.”

“Are you moving out?” His voice cracks.

My heart aches at the fear in his eyes. “No. But I asked you a lot about how much I owed you, and you kept brushing me off. I appreciate your kindness, but I want us on equal footing.”

I sit on the bed again.

“I understand now, I really do, and I’m sorry.” He shifts in the chair, his eyes meeting mine. “Truly.”

“I just want us to be partners.”

“I respect the hell out of you. I don’t see you as a delicate flower, just so you know. It was more about my fear of losing you than thinking you couldn’t handle it.”

Unable to keep the distance between us any longer, I walk over to him. “I know. Your sister and Jade helped me see that. But from now on, we’re a team, okay? And don’t be so scared I’m going to run off because of some puck bunnies. I want this to work out just as much as you do. Remember, you weren’t the only one that night under the stars. I was there. I felt it too.”

He nods, wrapping his arms around my waist and nuzzling his head into my stomach. I run my fingers through his soft hair and he clings to me tighter.

“Are you going to sleep in here tonight?”

“I should. To teach you a lesson.” I laugh, but I’d probably sneak into his bed in the middle of the night. “But I think it would pain me just as much as it would you.”

He releases me, stands, and picks me up bride style.

“Conor,” I say, and he lowers me toward the bed.

“The pillow goes in my bed.”

I pick it up, and he walks us through the door, past the kitchen, and into his bedroom, where he deposits me on the edge of the mattress.

“I’m sorry,” he says again.

I press my finger to his lips. “It’s over. Now, we move on.” I remove my finger and press my lips to his, thankful the fight is over.

“Well then, let me apologize properly. I hear make-up sex is pretty great.” He flips my legs out from under me and my back falls to the mattress. He crawls over me. “Hey, you don’t like Monopoly, do you?”

“Um… no. Why?”

“Good answer.” Then he strips me of my clothes and shows me just how sorry he is.

Orgasm after orgasm, the fight slips further and further from my mind.