“Hey.” Hooking a finger under her chin, I force her gaze to mine. “Your tears are not a weakness, so stop trying to hide them. Don’t be sorry for showing me how you feel. Being vulnerable with each other is how we learn to be the best versions of ourselves as partners. When you show me the type of love you need, I learn how to give it to you.” Her watery gaze flickers at the four-letter word that leaves my mouth without warning, and my chest tightens like a squeezing fist. It’s part confusion, part familiarity, four letters that came out of nowhere but settle around me with an ease I never
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