and he’s happier than he’s ever been. I know how much he loves you. So, if you don’t think there’s a way to make this work, walk away.”
Tears filled my eyes, but I quickly blinked them back. I knew Eric wasn’t asking me this because he didn’t want me with his brother. He was trying to protect him, and by doing that, he was also protecting me. And he was completely right. I needed to really think about what I wanted, because if Robert asked me to move in with him, I would need to be prepared, no matter what my answer was.
I was at my house, just staring out the window, trying to come up with some answers when Robert called.
“Hey, what are you doing?” he asked.
“Um…you know,” I said, rubbing my forehead. “Just working on the house.”
“Yeah? I got off early tonight. I thought I’d come down and stay the night.”
“You know, I don’t think tonight is good.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m just really tired. I think I’m going to bed early tonight.”
“Are you feeling okay?”
“Yeah, totally fine,” I lied. “It’s just been a long week, lots of driving.”
I heard him sigh over the phone. “I know. I’m sorry that I’ve had you do all the driving. I’m just slammed as I wrap up some stuff before Christmas.”
“I know. I’m just gonna stay in and go to bed early.”
“Okay, I’ll let you go. Give me a call tomorrow.”
“Sure.”
“I love you.”
I bit my lip, not sure what to say. “I know.”
There was silence for a moment. “Anna, are you sure you’re okay.”
“Of course. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
I hung up before he could ask anymore questions. That probably wasn’t the best way to handle that, but I wasn’t sure I could lie to him, and I definitely wasn’t ready to talk this out with him. Besides, he might change his mind. There was no guarantee that he would really ask me to move in with him. Maybe what his brothers said got through to him.
I sat in my chair for another half hour before deciding that going to bed really did sound like the best option. I walked through the house and turned off all the lights, then made my way upstairs to my room. I really didn’t have very much furniture and my bed was small in comparison to Robert’s. I really needed to think about getting a new bed.
I was just dozing off to sleep when I felt arms wrap around me and pull me in closer to a very large, very warm, sexy body. I sighed contentedly as Robert kissed my cheek.
“You came.”
“You sounded strange on the phone. I was worried. You would tell me if something was wrong, right?”
I swallowed hard and nodded.
“Anna, I can’t do this without you again. I spent way too many years wishing that I had you by my side. Now that I have you, I won’t lose you.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I rolled over and pulled him closer so I could kiss him. His hands slid over my body and through my hair. I didn’t know if this would work out between us, but I wanted him for tonight and as long as I could have him. Because deep down, I knew that if he asked me to move to the city, that would be the end of us. I knew myself well enough to know that I had no desire to live up there. I loved Robert, but I would be miserable up there, and then we could never truly be happy. So, I took what I could from Robert for tonight and decided to worry about the rest later.
Robert
With just five days to go until Christmas, I was almost free to spend two uninterrupted weeks with Anna. She got the time off from Eric, and I had put in for my vacation time. There was just one thing I needed to do before taking that vacation, and that was attend the company Christmas party. I hated going to this thing, but it was required, especially if I wanted to make senior partner.
“Hey, did you already get presents for your brothers?” Anna asked as she walked out of her kitchen carrying a glass of wine. She was dressed only in one of my shirts, which was damn sexy. I couldn’t focus on anything other than the fact that her legs looked phenomenal as she walked across the room to me.