State of Mind (Running In Circles Book 3) by E.M. Lindsey

Author:E.M. Lindsey [Lindsey, E.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-09-03T16:00:00+00:00

Luca: What time do you open?

Wilder: Eleven.

Luca: Be there.

His heart thrashed wildly against the inside of his chest, and he took several calming breaths, then moved to the kitchen for water since coffee would only make his nerves worse. It didn’t sound like a break-up text—not that they had established any kind of relationship that would require a break-up. A sort-of date and a minute-long kiss counted for nothing, at least in his experience. He wanted more, but he knew that was going to take time.

He was beyond begging though. His first instinct was to make himself as pretty and expensive looking as possible, to find some way to peacock himself in front of Wilder so the other man would find reasons to keep him around. But he was trying to break his old habits. He wanted Wilder to see the other things about him, to dig deep and find bits and pieces of him worth keeping around that didn’t have anything to do with money or sex appeal.

He wanted someone—he wanted Wilder—to look at him as he was, in his sloppy sweats and an old t-shirt, and see him as a man worth trying for. For so many years, he’d heard too many people say it was impossible to love someone if you didn’t love yourself.

And that thought terrified him, because most days he didn’t even like himself. He stared back at a reflection he barely recognized and wished he’d drawn a different lot before his soul came to earth. But he was capable of love. He knew that. He loved his siblings, and he loved his parents. He loved Gabby, even if she would never return the sentiment.

He was even coming to love Raphael as one of his first friends that wanted him around just because. And it didn’t feel less than just because his own self-worth had hit rock bottom. But maybe they were on to something. And maybe that’s what Wilder was trying to tell him.

He felt nervous as he escaped from the Manor without Raphael noticing him, and he decided to walk the half mile to Whipped. The warm air and the soft summer breeze helped his shoulders relax and clear his head a little as he headed down the sidewalk.

In the courtyard across from the fire station, he could see the Fire Chief standing at attention and another tall, dark-haired man in front leading the rest of the crew through exercises. Had it been any other day, he might have stopped to watch. He appreciated a fit human body in all forms, and he had absolutely spent his money on firemen calendars in the past.

But right now, his mind was focused on one thing—whether or not Wilder was going to end the best thing that had ever happened to him before it even began.

His heart was in his throat, but he reached for the handle to the bakery door and tugged. His foot slipped off the step with the force of his pull and

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