he was her one stable thing, her go to.. and what had stopped her from telling him months ago? years ago? the fact that⌠if she messed this up, if feelings ruined the fact she could go to him with anything.. then who would she have left? who would she turn to then? thomas had seen her through her worsts, through having to put her grandmother into a car home, through sitting at her bedside in her last days, to her brothers murder. heâd seen her cry her eyes out. he had helped pick her back up when she couldnât do it herself and what if something as⌠silly as love, ended up turning sour? what if she wasnât loveable? she didnât think she was.
she knew it was love, sheâd known it a long time⌠by the comfort she felt by him even being around, by the ease she felt and how she could be herself. by the fact heâd get her to smile so easily. she was an idiot, an idiot for ever thinking sheâd be okay with him and that woman. itâd fizzle out, she kept telling herself. it would fizzle out and end and then sheâd tell him, that is what she kept telling herself to make it bearable.Â
âwhat?â she half whispered, shocked that he hadnât just.. stormed away from her, that he still stood there⌠and how could he say that he felt the same? after all this time? she stares at thomas, like heâs everything and more. âbecause i-⌠thomas i-...â she let her lips remain parted, unable to stop the way her green hues keep dipping to his. âi just.. canât watch you marry her, i canât be there if that is what you want, to be with her then⌠i canât be there. i have been the jealous best friend before thomas but, i canât.. not again.â her hand moves over her chest, like it truly physically hurt her heart. ânot when sheâd have, everything i wantâŚâ eden dared to step closer, her eyes staying on his, to the point she had to crane her neck a little bit, given her height. âif that is the life you choose, i donât want to ruin it⌠tell me to walk away and i will..â that hand over her chest shifts, reaches and rests on his chest, her fingers running over the buttons of his shirt. âtell me, really think and tell me what it is that you want. no what ifs, no other though, just what you want right now. take everything else out of the equation.â her fingers were moving up, hovering in that space between wanting to brush her fingers across his jaw and bring him down to her height, and the other part of her told herself to pull her hand away, leave him be happy.Â
it took a moment for thomas to realize what he had just done â he proposed to stacy and confessed his ture love for eden all in one night. hell, in fifteen minutes. he felt like a complete asshole, like he couldnât decide what to do. there she was, eden, the only person who truly understood him, who was there for him in every and any situation he got himself into. someone who stood by his side in the darkest moments of his life. she truly knew the real thomas, he never had to pretend he was someone else around eden. and then there was stacy â a woman heâd known for a little over six months. a woman who was completely different. she had some amazing qualities to her, she pushed him in his career and was there for him in tough situations as well, but there wasnât that spark that he longed for in the relationship. thomas loved stacy, but he wasnât in love with her.
âeden, stop â,â he shakes his head, in complete shock to hear her say those words. thomas takes a step back as soon as he feels edenâs hand land on his chest, not wanting to even think about what could happen next. he wanted to just pull her close to him, kiss her and tell her he loved her but he couldnât do that, especially not now. âyou canât do this to me right now, not right here. ten minutes after i proposed to a different woman, eden. you canât â,â he shakes his head, feeling the adrenaline rush through his veins as his heart started beating faster than usual. what in the world was he supposed to do now? âgod, eden, i wish you would have just told me all of this an hour ago! i would have never taken out that damn ring out of the box,â he raises his voice. not in an angry way, rather in a frustrated one. he was lost, so lost â so many thoughts running through his head to the point where it felt like it was about to explode.Â
thomas takes a deep breath with his eyes closed, finally calms himself down. âokay, listen to me,â he starts, opening his eyes. âyouâre gonna go home now and iâll come over to your place in a few hours and we will talk, alright? we canât do this now, not here. itâs disrespectful to stacy. to all of our friends. alright?â he stares deeply into her eyes.