A Me and Him Thing (The Me and You #2)

Bonus Chapter

QUINN

SAWYER HAS CERTAINLY shown me how much he loves me. He’s told me as well. Over and over. It feels as though whispered I love yous are constantly bouncing off the walls, floating through the air.

But I still have a few questions that are weighing on my mind. I need to hear his answers, uttered from his lips to my ears.

Last night we became one again, in heart and mind. I wasn’t sure if our relationship could ever return to what it once was.

It can. It has.

Actually, it never went away.

We just enjoyed breakfast in bed together. Now Sawyer is cleaning the kitchen, refusing to let me help.

“You’re not allowed to leave the bed, my sweet wife. This is total relaxation time for you.”

I’m no longer fighting getting the rest Sawyer thinks I need.

I love how protective he is of me. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt this happy.

” I can’t help myself. I laugh aloud as I stretch my arms and legs.

“I’m alive, I have my memories back, I have Josie and Jordyn, and I have my husband.

Life is perfect.” I feel like jumping up and down on the bed and screaming at the top of my lungs.

“I’m so happy. The life I loved is mine again. ”

Sawyer plops down on the bed. “You’re the most adorable creature in this entire world. There’s no place I’d rather be than right here with you. I want forever with you, Quinn. And even then, I’d want more.”

He kisses me long and slow.

“At some point we have to stop kissing,” I say against his lips. Eventually, we need to talk a few things out.

“Never.”

I’m not arguing. After a long while, however, we do finally come up for air. Sawyer rolls over onto his back, and I curl up at his side, resting my head on his chest.

“Thanks for pampering me. Now that I don’t feel like I have to prove I’m fine, I love it.”

“I’m sorry I made you feel that way. I knew you were my Quinn from the first moment you returned.

The light in your eyes, the words you uttered, the way you looked at Josie and Jordyn, the way you looked at me, and the desperate way you clung to me.

All of it told me it was you, whole and complete.

Even though you’d been through a horrible ordeal, you came out of it intact.

It took a strong person to survive what you endured.

I know you’ll have to deal with the trauma, but we’ll do it together. You don’t have to face anything alone.”

“If you keep treating me like this, I’m going to be such a spoiled wife.” He’s always spoiled me, lavishing me with love and respect.

“It’s all I’ve wanted to do since you arrived home. Other things kept getting in the way.”

By other, I think he means Bree. “I think I shocked everyone with my return.”

“In a good way.” Sawyer kisses the top of my head. “This is the best day I’ve had since the day you left.”

“There are only two things I’m missing.” I smile to myself.

“Josie and Jordyn?” Sawyer guesses.

“Okay, four things.”

“Four? What are they?”

“Josie, Jordyn, world peace, and a burger.”

Sawyer laughs, the sound rumbling in my ear. “You know what those words mean to me. They made me fall for you the first moment we met.”

“Our love-at-first-sight moment.” I scoot up and kiss him, soft and slow. We’re in no hurry today. Then I whisper, “She loves you.”

He releases a long breath. “I saved that note. I carried it with me when I searched for you in Nicaragua. Then I hung it in my closet. Not a day went by that I wasn’t reminded of how much you loved me.”

“How much I love you. I’m not past tense.” I kiss him again.

“No, you’re not. I have a second chance with the love of my life. You’ll always be my miracle.” Sawyer kisses me in between words. “That will never change, never fade. Please don’t hate me for becoming an overprotective husband. I can’t lose you again. It would kill me.”

“I’m not going anywhere. If I had my way, we’d never be separated again.”

“Hmm. That might make going to work difficult. But it could be arranged.” We laugh lightly as Sawyer pulls me close, and I sink into him.

All I want to do is kiss him. He seems to feel the same way. There’s nothing to stop us from doing as we please. The next while is silent as we kiss like there’s no tomorrow.

I snuggle up on Sawyer’s chest again, our arms and legs entangled.

Sawyer slowly runs his fingers through my hair. He takes a deep breath. “I guess it’s time. I imagine you have a lot of questions.”

“We do need to talk,” I begin, not wanting to ruin the mood, yet needing to hear some answers.

“You know what? Let’s get everything out in the open. I don’t want any secrets between us. Ask me anything. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.” The stress of the last few days has melted away. He’s an open book with nothing to hide.

I don’t want to sweep everything under the carpet. We have to talk this out, or resentment might cause bitterness to grow. Tough questions are on the horizon, but I’m ready to face them. “How did it happen? You and Bree?”

I expect him to go all tense on me, but he doesn’t. Instead, he turns onto his side, gently moving me onto my pillow so we can face each other.

I like this. A face-to-face honest conversation is what we desperately need. Even after the magic of last night.

One hand cups my cheek. “My beautiful Quinn. I still feel like I’m dreaming.”

“This is very real.”

Sawyer exhales slowly, turning serious. “I know this will be hard for you to hear. But secrets will destroy us. I’m going to tell you everything. Are you sure you’re ready?”

“Yeah. I need to know.”

“I guess it was about six weeks after I lost you that Bree showed up on the doorstep, a mound of suitcases behind her. She announced that I needed help, and she was there to provide it. She was pushy, no doubt about it. But I was desperate. I did need help. The preschools I’d been to were awful.

The Grandma Gang could only do so much. Work was asking when I was coming back.

I didn’t know what I was going to do. Then Bree showed up, offering to move in and take care of the girls, and I let her.

I was grieving, and I didn’t know what else to do.

I was lost without you. She was the answer to all of my problems.”

“I get it.” It sounds like Bree, pushing her way into a situation. She’s always had a domineering personality. Yet I can’t thank her enough for what she did for my daughters. My emotions will always be conflicted over the issue.

Sawyer continues. “It took me a long time to think of her as anything other than your best friend. My thoughts just didn’t go there.

Nothing happened between us until recently.

Around four months ago, I guess. To be clear, if Bree hadn’t been living in our home, taking care of our children, it never would’ve happened.

I never would’ve pursued her. Proximity made her convenient.

It was easy. I didn’t have to date. I didn’t have to change my life.

I didn’t have to find someone willing to become a mom to twin girls.

I didn’t have to hide my grief. I didn’t even have to hide my love for you.

It happened because she was there, and I was lonely.

I know that makes me sound like a jerk. Grief is a much stronger emotion than I realized.

I gave up and let life happen to me instead of taking control of my life.

It’s not an excuse. It’s just what happened. I’ve been a broken man without you.”

I feel for him. “Knowing it was Bree, my best friend, that was harsh. No matter who it was, it would’ve been difficult, though. Did you fall in love with her? Are you still in love with her? Is there a part of you that pines for her?” I need to hear it, even if it’s painful.

Sawyer doesn’t hesitate. “Those are loaded questions, but I’ve been expecting them.

The first answer is yes, I did feel love for her.

I told her I loved her. I was trying to love her.

To be honest, I was forcing myself to love her.

I was lonely. That’s my only excuse. She loved you.

Loving her made me feel like I was loving a part of you.

Does the love I feel for you compare to the love I felt for her?

No. There’s no comparison. One love is all-consuming.

That’s how I feel for you. The other was a desperate grab at happiness.

That’s what I felt for Bree. I was honest. Bree knew how I felt, and she accepted it.

In answer to the rest of your questions, there’s nothing inside me that pines for her.

With you, there was an ache inside me that never went away from the moment I lost you.

I think that’s the very description of pining. ”

My insides tremble from his eloquent words. “I love that answer, but it makes me hurt for you.”

Sawyer leans in for a soft kiss, then continues.

“Here’s the thing, I loved her because she took such good care of our daughters.

That was the basis of the love between us.

That’s how love grew between us. The two can’t be separated.

One doesn’t happen without the other. That’s why I had such a hard time breaking things off with her.

I felt like a jerk. After what she had done—sacrificing her life to care for our daughters—I felt guilty saying, ‘See ya.’ I was trying to let her down easy, when all I wanted to do was be with you.

I felt like I needed to end things with her before I could be with you.

Seemed like the decent thing to do. She took advantage of my guilt, demanding time with me to ‘discuss’ the situation.

There was nothing to discuss. She didn’t understand that I wasn’t making a choice.

The choice was made the moment you showed up on my doorstep. ”

My heart swells. “So all that time consoling her, what was happening?” Because my mind took me to all kinds of horrible places.