Afterward, they lay in each other’s arms, and she listened to the slowing beat of his heart against her ear.
He said, “I didn’t mean it to hurt you.”
“I react badly when I’m afraid.”
It was an admission she hadn’t intended to make. It might have surprised him too, for his arm tightened around her.
“It was you who taught me not to be afraid to grow. But whatever we do—or don’t do—it has to be together. We can agree on that much.”
“We can.” She kissed his chest.
He moved, looming over her. “It is not a condition of love, Constance. That is forever.”
This time she let the tears come. “We agree on that, too,” she whispered, and pressed her damp cheek to his.
