Chapter 54 - Willow

I held my breath as I waited for his answer. Watching him battle his personal demons had almost crushed my heart. I knew intimately what it took to stay here, in the now, in the present. That this oversized, handsome man struggled in similar ways broke my heart.

He licked his lips as he looked up at me. "I don't know, cupcake. I hope not. Even if I didn't want you like a flame needs oxygen, I also don't think we could be with other people. Not and be happy. Not and have our baser needs met. Not and feel seen and accepted for exactly who we are."

I nodded. His words resonated in my soul. Spoke to my heart. Never before had I felt so noticed. As if he saw the deepest, ugliest parts of me and still decided he wanted me. "So, if I do touch you, it can be your hands and forearms?" I asked. I needed to focus on the now. The here. I didn't think I could examine those deeper parts of myself right now. Even with him here. Maybe because he was here.

He smiled, although it looked tinged w