but I can sense that he’s deep in thought, and I know exactly what he’s thinking. “We dated for a year. It took five months for me to feel comfortable enough to bring Benny around him, and he and Benny got along really well.”
His throat bobs with his swallow. “Did Benny love him?”
Benny adored Jase, and after the split, he would often ask about him. Luckily, he was too young to truly comprehend what was happening. I don’t respond, which is answer enough. “Are you okay?” I ask, noticing the frown marring his lips.
“I’m not going to lie,” he says through a heavy exhale. “It’s a little painful knowing that some other guy was a father figure—”
“No,” I cut in. “He was never that. The only father figures Benny has are my dad and Holden.”
Leo’s head throws back, landing on the back of the couch. “How much does Holden hate me?”
“He doesn’t,” I assure. “Not even a little bit.”
“Bullshit,” Leo mumbles.
“Holden was your biggest supporter, Leo. From the beginning. He’s who pushed me to trust myself enough to be with you in the first place. And when I told him I was pregnant, he urged me to tell you. But, he understood why I couldn’t…”
Leo blows out a breath.
I look down at my lap. “You have every right to be mad at me,” I murmur.
He cracks his knuckles, one by one, and I can feel his eyes on me, so I gather my courage, look up at him. His eyes are clear, resolute. “Earlier, when you were talking about school, you were quick to say that you’re not missing out on time with Benny. And before that when you were talking about how you found out you were pregnant, you kept saying that there’s nothing wrong with him, like you’re scared I’m judging you or something.”
My knees bounce, anxious, and heat burns behind my eyes. “Of course I am,” I say, barely a whisper.
“Why?”
“Every decision I’ve ever made since I found out I was pregnant with him has been for him, for his best interest, but I’ve never had to justify those choices. It was always just Benny and me, and now there’s you. And it’s important you trust me with him if we… do this.”
“Mia…” My name is a sigh… and a curse. He stands, taking my hand. “I want to show you something.” I think he’s leading me to the bedroom, which is wrong on so many levels, but he doesn’t. He takes me to the bathroom and has me facing the mirror. It takes a moment for me to realize what he’s showing me. Above my eye level, stuck on the mirror with tape, is the back of a familiar picture that was once on my wall.
I read the words I’d written so many years ago:
Leo,
God gave you a voice for a reason.
Use it.
Because if you don’t stand for something, then you’ll fall for everything.
I love you,
Mia.
“It’s because of you, Mia,” Leo says, his voice gruff as he stands behind me, his touch gentle on my shoulders. “That’s why I wanted to get into law enforcement… so I could use my voice to stand for something right.” His eyes meet mine in the mirror. “You changed my life. Before everything else happened, you changed me. You saw something in me no one else did.” His throat moves with his swallow as his hands move from my shoulders down to my arms, and he turns me to him, linking our fingers together. Bending slightly so he can look in my eyes, he says, “I trusted you then, and I trust you now.”
It’s hard to see the emotion in his stare with the tears glazing mine. I ask, because I might be a little insane, “Are you seeing someone?”
Leo blinks, wiping all previous warmth from his eyes. He stands to full height, right before he gives me that cocky smirk I hate to love. “Why? You want to make another Benny?”
I choke on a scoff and roll my eyes, pushing him away from me. “I swear, the things that come out of your mouth.”
Chuckling, he pulls me into him. Not all the way, just enough so I can feel the heat radiating off him. Eyes narrowed slightly, he says, his voice a tremor that makes its way up my spine, “If I recall correctly, you like the things that come out of my mouth.” He lowers his lips to my ear, his hands going to my waist, squeezing gently.