Free She's My Kind of Girl by Jennifer Dawson

met his gaze, he could see the brightness in her eyes and hated himself for it. “Like I’m not good enough.”
    Right then he knew the truth. She’d never worked through any of those childhood feelings; she’d hidden them away and pretended they didn’t exist. And being home was forcing her to deal with all of them. That she still saw herself as that teenage girl, convinced everyone was judging her and finding her lacking. “That’s not true. Name one person who’s treated you badly since you got here.”
    â€œGina.”
    He scoffed. “Gina’s jealous of you.”
    â€œI know.” Darcy’s voice sounded soft and hurt, and Griffin wanted to take her in his arms.
    â€œNobody thinks you’re not good enough.”
    â€œI know that here.” She touched her temple. “But it doesn’t change how I feel.”
    â€œI’m sorry.” He looked away from her.
    â€œI’m sorry too.” She took a deep breath and blew it out. “We’re the past and that’s where we need to stay. We’re not good for each other, Griffin. We don’t fit. Not anymore.” She looked away from him. “If you want honest, I’ll give it to you.”
    He waited. Knowing he’d hate what he heard.
    She pressed her lips together for a second before speaking. “I can’t just have sex with you. I can’t have a good time with you in bed and work out this tension between us, because there’s too much history there. Too much baggage and hurt. And the truth is, fair or not, I’ve never really forgiven you for not coming with me. That you loved this town more than me.”
    He looked out the window and let the defeat wash over him. “I loved you. You know I couldn’t leave my brothers. And I pleaded with you to stay. I asked you to marry me.” He’d never told anyone of that humiliating day when he’d begged her to stay, getting down on one knee and asking her not to leave him.
    â€œI was right to say no. We were kids. It would have ended in disaster.”
    â€œYou were right.” It had still fucking gutted him. His dad had taken off, his mom had been sick, and his brothers needed him. It had felt like everything important in his life was falling apart, and she had to insist on leaving. “I’m just saying you’re not the only one who got hurt.”
    â€œThen I guess we’re even.” Her voice was soft and distant.
    â€œI guess so.”
    â€œI’m sorry.”
    â€œMe too.”
    She got out, and he didn’t stop her. Didn’t even look at her. When he heard the door close, he gunned the engine and drove away.

Chapter Thirteen
    Darcy avoided the citizens of Revival for five days and tried her best not to think about Griffin.
    She’d done the right thing. She’d severed the threads of the bonds that were trying to tie her to him. They had no future. And she was self-aware enough to know she was too emotionally attached to sleep with him. Just that brief interlude in the car felt enough to ruin her for other men.
    But she couldn’t stop replaying their argument in her head over and over again. She’d never tell him, but he was the inspiration behind her blog. Way back when she was a girl he’d taught her to own her sexuality, be proud of it. He’d taught her to never settle for less than she deserved. To demand equal pleasure. And to never, ever be afraid to ask for what she wanted.
    When she’d moved to New York and finally started dating again, she’d realized Griff was an anomaly. That most men expected her to take a backseat when it came to sex, and that wasn’t acceptable to her. The more she talked to her girlfriends, the more she found that was the norm.
    So she’d started her blog to empower women.
    But Griff was right. She used her real name to write more serious pieces on the social impact of sexuality. Not because she