Thoughts whizzed through my mind. I had about a million things I wanted to say to him, but where to start?
He gave a dramatic sigh. “I know that you told Mattie you were in love with me and all. And, of course, she told me. But—now this is just me personally— I think it would mean a hellof a lot more coming from your mouth. You know what I mean?”
I giggled, my cheeks tight from smiling. “I love you, Oliver.”
“Ugh,” he groaned, dipping his head to kiss me again. “That sounds so fucking good coming out of your mouth.”
“I wanted to tell you, but I thought I was being selfish,” I admitted.
“Never hold back from me again, okay?” he said, forcing a stern voice that didn’t sound at all natural coming from his lips. “That was my thing, and you broke me of it. No more secrets, got it?”
“Got it.” I nodded.
His arms were the only thing keeping me tethered to the ground.
He took a piece of my hair and tangled it in his fingers. “I’m sorry I let you go. I thought that I couldn’t be the kind of guy you need, but I realized, the kind of guy you need is someone who’s going to show up. Someone who will put you first. I thought I didn’t have it in me, but you made me realize that I do. I don’t care if it’s New York or the middle of fucking nowhere. I want to be around you always. Adventure will come no matter what, but it’s not going to be worth living if you aren’t there.”
His words were even more than I had been hoping to hear. He was thinking about coming with me to New York? Even though I had already mentally turned away from that path, just the fact that he was willing to follow me there meant the world.
“I’m not going to New York,” I said, smiling.
His eyebrows drew together. “What are you talking about?”
I pointed to the line behind me. “I was waiting to get aflight back to Key Ridge. To tell you that my dreams have changed. I think they did a while ago, but I was too scared to admit it to myself.”
He looked at the line and then back at me, comprehension spreading across his face.
“That job isn’t important to me. You showed me what living could really be like. And I want that. With you. I don’t care what we do—stay in Key Ridge, try something else. Whatever it is, it sounds like the most exciting thing in the world, and I can’t wait to experience it with you.”
“Are you joking?” he said, shaking his head slowly.
“Nope.”
“You have no idea how happy that just made me,” he said before his mouth covered mine again.
After a minute, when we came up for air, I started laughing.
“Look what you did,” I said. “You did exactly what you said you would—showed me how fun life could be. You got to me.”
“Yeah, I did,” he said proudly.
I shook my head, still smiling. “You even left me without a plan. And even after all these weeks, I never did manage to help you find any of your own.”
Oliver’s gaze stayed fixed on me, as if I were the only person in existence. “You’remy plan, Frankie. You’re all my plans.”
Epilogue
OLIVER
“Got everything packed?”Frankie asked as she lugged a bag into the back seat of my car.
“Yep,” I said, stuffing a duffel bag along with a ton of loose items into the trunk.
She rolled her eyes at my mess.
Spending all of my time around her had changed me in so many ways, yet when it came to the small stuff, it seemed I would be this way forever.
She pinched a pair of my socks between her fingers. “Are these clean at least?”
