Wes doesn’t say anything, just listens.
“You’re kind and generous. You’re patient, and you give me space to be myself, while still holding me so close, letting me feel you. Your strength and your unwavering—” My voice breaks, and Wes wraps his arms around me. It’s like Evie said earlier. It’s special when you meet someone who doesn’t finish your sentences for you or rush you. “You don’t push me more than I can take. You don’t…” I brush at his hair. “You don’t fucking judge me, baby.”
“Why would I judge you?” he finally says. “You’ve done nothing wrong. Things were donetoyou, but even if you’d done something wrong, then what good would it do to judge you? Would it change anything?”
I shake my head, tears pressing behind my eyes. “No.”
“Of course not.” He smiles softly. “Love though. Love changes everything, doesn’t it?” He almost sounds surprised, like he never expected it.
“It really does.”
“I was looking for something for a long time. It turns out it was you all along, someone I thought I knew but who turned out to be even more amazing than I ever thought possible.”
I dig my teeth into my bottom lip. “I still don’t remember you.”
“Doesn’t matter. You know me now, and I’ll remind you every day of who I am.”
My heart flutters like crazy. “And who is that?” I know the answer, but I want to hear him say it again and again.
“Your boyfriend, the guy who loves you and wants to spend his life making you happy. The guy who thinks the world of you, babe.”
“I think the world of you, too.” God, he has no idea how much, but I’ll tell him every day.
The rain starts again, hammering against the small window. Wes wraps himself around me like an octopus, pulling me down with him as we both slowly drift off to sleep, my mind finally quiet in this perfect space, with him.
Chapter 31
Wes
It’sstilldarkoutside,and the morning is cold on the track as Jett and I stretch before our run. I lift my arm and pull my elbow behind my head.
“I’m a summer guy,” I say.
Jett stands and shakes his arms out. “That was random.”
“Just sayin’ that I get tired of the dark and cold. I love sunning on the beach. We’ll have to soak up some rays when we’re on summer break, not that I get much of a break.”
Jett steps up to me, wraps his arms around my waist, and kisses my nose. “I’m a winter guy. Whatarewe going to do?”
I hold him back and tilt my head, smirking. “I guess we’ll have to find a middle ground. We can always share the fall. I mean, it’s when we met.”
Jett rests his head against mine. “Sounds good to me.” He kisses me softly, and I lean into him. Before we get too heated, Jett pulls away and faces down the track. “Ready to get your ass whooped?”
I raise a brow and fold my arms. “I thought we were just running for fun.”
“Thisisfun. I mean, I get it. It’s hard to compete with me.”
“Oh, you’resoon!”
I know for a fact he’s going to whoop my ass, which is still a little sore from fucking, but he’s right. It’s fun.
We stand side by side, smirking at each other as we lean forward.
“On three…” he says.
“Three!” I yell and bolt off.
“Hey!”
