No Matter, You Don't Have to Wait for Me novel · Chapter 18 of 24

Chapter 18: Nobody Has to Wait

I woke at six to a window full of light.

The storm had blown out in the night, and the harbor lay flat and silver beyond the glass.

Somebody had left a tray outside my door.

On it was a paper cup of coffee with a lid, and the lid said M in marker.

I opened it and smelled milk.

He had got it right this time.

I put on my coat, which had dried stiff on the radiator, and took the elevator down to the lobby.

The wedding party was gone, and the old man's wheelchair was parked by the door with a note taped to it.

Donovan's office was a small room behind the front desk.

He was standing at the window with his sleeves rolled up and a blanket folded over the arm of the couch.

"You didn't sleep," I said.

"I did, for about three hours. It's a very bad couch."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He turned around. "Can I say something before I lose my nerve?"

"Yes."

"Sit down if you want."

I stayed standing.

He put his hands in his pockets, took them out again, and set them on the back of a chair.

"When we met, I decided you were a woman who had just left a man," he said. "I thought that meant you weren't mine to want, and that I should keep my hands to myself and my mouth shut until you said otherwise."

"That was kind of you."

"It was cowardly. It was easier than saying I wanted something."

I held the coffee in both hands.

"Last night you said you needed to be sure it was me you wanted," he said. "I've been thinking about it all night. I think that's fair, and I think you can only find out by choosing, not by waiting."

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