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“So you’re backing out?” he asks incredulously

“I don’t knohat I’ht now, Ollie Can I please have time to deal with the fact that these animals defiled my workspace and showed me how quickly they could invade my life? You have no clue what that feels like”

“And you have no idea what it’s like to know the ht walk”

His wordshi my head, embarrassed, and frustrated by the no-win situation I find myself in

“I’m sorry, Ollie”

“Yeah, me too,” he says quietly

Is he takingthe fence? The questions swirl around in my brain I have no answers The space between ry, scared, and confused This is calling to question ht I was It’s one thing to wonder what you’d do in theory, and another to live it in real life It’d be different if it was just the two of us, but it’s not A dull throb beings in e the pressure points in an atte to creep up on me

“Hey, you okay?” Ollie asks

“I feel a headache co,” I admit

“What’s happening now isn’t about us I knoe have two different opinions on the best way to approach this I’ainst you”

“Are you sure about that?” I whisper

“I’m passionate about it, yes, but I can keep it separate from our relationship” I tilt my head up, and he kissesI take very seriously”

“I do, too”

Just like that, we’re recalibrated, but I can’t shake the feeling in ut

Chapter Ten