Any Way You Want Me by Yuwanda Black Read Free Book Online Page B

insight into why Gatlin was pushing her away. Her friend's words rang in
her ears. "Honey, unless and until a man is ready to open up to you,
there's nothing you can do about it. And from my experience — especially once
they're used to operating like that — unless something significant happens,
they usually don't change."
     
               
Kylie decided to call her parents. She really needed their insight.
    .
. .
               
               
"Every man is different honey," her father said. "But how can you
get around problems if he won't even talk to you about them?"
     
               
"You're father's right, Kylie," her mom said on the other line from
the extension in their living room.
     
               
Her father was probably on the phone in the kitchen. Her parents still had a
land line, in spite of the fact that everyone carried cell phones these days.
They had them too, but when she and her brother called home, they had a habit
of calling the land line first.
     
               
"If there's one thing I've learned about men in my 38 years of being
married to your father is that, even as close as we are, unless and until he's
ready to talk to me about something, I can't get anything out of him. … I know
him so well though, that usually I know what it is before he says
anything," her mother said.
     
               
"And that's why I usually don’t say anything," her father replied.
"Because I know you already know."
     
               
Kylie listened to their banter with tears in her eyes. She wished she knew
Gatlin well enough to guess what he was thinking. She'd hope to get to that
point with him. But if he wasn't willing to let her in …
     
               
"Look baby girl," her father said. "I don't want to see you get
hurt. It's only been three months, so maybe give it some time. But this young
man is what … 37 you say? It's highly unlikely that he's going to all of a
sudden open up to a woman. Now if there's anyone that can make him, it's you.
But I don't want you making a man do anything. He needs to come to you because
he wants to, not because he's been pushed too. You deserve that."
     
               
"And you're nobody's therapist Kylie," her mother chimed in.
"It's not your job to fix him. Your heart is so open honey, so full of
love that so easily pours out. But don't let anybody trample on it. Don’t let
anybody squash your enthusiasm for love. The right man is out there for you —
someone who's as open and ready for love as you are .. and who's willing to do
the work to keep it once he finds it. From what you've told us, I don't think
this one is."
     
               
"What your father and I have isn't perfect, but one thing he's always made
me feel is welcome … not just in his life, but in his heart," her mother
finished.
     
               
After hanging up with her parents, Kylie felt better for having gotten some
insight, but sad too and the realizations their words were making her face.
     
               
Popping a bag of popcorn, she settled in to watch one of her favorite movies to
get her mind off things for a while.
    .
. .
     
    Riggs: You wanna get married, don'tcha?
     
    Lorna: Yes I do.
     
    Riggs: Why didn't you tell me?
     
    Lorna: Because I didn't want to put any
pressure on you, Riggs. I mean, if you want to someday, that'd be great; if you
don't, I love you. I'll take you any way I can get you, Riggs.
     
               
Kiley slipped the last few kernels of popcorn into her mouth and sighed. She'd
watched that scene from Lethal Weapon 4 at least a hundred times. It was
one of her all-time favorites between a man and a woman in a movie. It was so
pure, so sincere. Her heart melted.
     
                Why aren't women free to love a man like that? she thought. Enough to
say I'll take you any way you want me.
     
               
"Because it's