I sighed. I would not let her leave again without getting the words out. “You weren’t just something I added to my to-do list because I was bored. I’ve never been good at expressing my feelings or putting a label on anything. But for you, I wanted to try. If you were to ask me to do just that and label what we were, I would say we were in a relationship. We were in a committed exclusive relationship, at least for me. I can’t imagine sleeping with anyone else when you are all I want. I am still committed to you, and I will do whatever it takes to keep that relationship, because I am in love with you, and I cannot even fathom the thought of losing you.”
She stood there, unmoving. This was not how I wanted to tell her I loved her, but if she was really walking away, she had to know the truth.
“You love me? How could you possibly know that? You had a funny way of showing it to Cara.”
I chuckled, taking both of her hands in mine. “Are you kidding? How could I not be in love with you? You’re beautiful, inside and out. You’re compassionate, brave, hardworking, and you see the beauty in even the ugliest parts of life. You encourage me, you don’t put up with my bullshit, and you challenge me. When I’m with you, I feel like I can accomplish anything as long as I have your eyes to look into. Loving you feels effortless. It’s something I do subconsciously, and when I’m not with you… my heart doesn’t beat. I love you, and that isn’t up for discussion, Blair. I loved you before you left, and I love you now. It’s the only thing I am meant to do in life, and I think you might love me too or you wouldn’t still be here. When you asked me to come home, you didn’t mean just to Seattle, did you? You wanted me to come home to you.”
“Don’t you fucking dare use your accident to get me back. That is not fair!” Her eyes were filled with tears, and she took a step back.
I shook my head. “No, that’s not what I am doing. If you genuinely want to be done, I’ll let you walk away without another word. But look me in the eyes and tell me we are done. Tell me you don’t love me.”
She didn’t say anything for a long minute, and I honestly thought I got it all wrong. I was convinced she was going to walk away again.
At this point she couldn’t hide her tears, and I was ready to accept defeat. She shook her head. “You know I can’t do that, Drea.”
“Why not?” I asked. I wanted to hear her say the words.
“Because I haven’t thought about anything else except for you since I left. Because my world came crashing down when I thought you died. Because I didn’t want to think about going a single day without you on this planet. Because… goddammit, because I love you, Drea! You’re my safe space, my home, and I need you here, okay?!”
I brought her closer to me and brushed my thumb under her tearful eye. “Baby, I’m not going anywhere unless you’re going with me. I’m so irrevocably and undeniably in love with you, and I will never forgive myself for letting you go a single second thinking otherwise.” And I kissed her.
Chapter Forty-Nine
Blair
“Relax, babe. I’ll get it.”We were sitting on the couch watchingStuart Little.I had never seen it, and she said it was Fallon’s favorite movie, so I decided to see what the hype was all about.
I had made the mistake of texting Fallon to let her know we were watching it, and I got about eight voice messages that were three decibels too high telling me how much I was going to love it and praising Drea for “leading me down the right path in life.”
I kissed Drea’s cheek and stood up to get the door, barely missing the smack on my ass. I would never get tired of these small moments with her. I still had to remind myself every day that she was alive and she was mine.
I was laughing as I opened the door, but it quickly died off as I stood in front of the last person I’d expected to see.
“Cara.” I was stunned, and a little confused. I hadn’t seen or talked to Cara since she’d called me a few weeks ago. She had gone through Fallon or Kaia to check in on Drea, but she hadn’t personally contacted us until now.
What was she doing here? Did she come here to yell at us some more?
“Blair, hey. I don’t know why I’m surprised to see you here. I guess I was expecting Drea to answer the door. I just wanted to check in, but I can see you’ve got it covered… Tell her I stopped by.”
She went to turn around but I stopped her. “Wait! Come in. She’s in the living room.”
She hesitated before turning around. “Blair, I don't know if that’s a good idea. I don’t think?—”
“Please, Cara. I know she wants to see you, and we should talk. We have too much history for things to end like this.”
She didn’t say anything for a minute until she sighed. “Fine… Just for a minute.”
I beamed and opened the door further.
“Who was it, darling?” Drea called from the living room. I stopped in the doorway and let Cara come into view. Drea’s playful smile fell as shock washed over her.
“Hey, Drea.” Cara gave a faint smile.
Drea stood up suddenly, and I worried she would fall over. She was walking a lot better, but I was still scared when she did anything strenuous. I almost lost her, and I would be damned if I let it happen again.
I ran to her side and made her sit back down. She did, but not without an eye roll. “Cara. I’m glad you’re here. Please, sit down and make yourself comfortable.”
Cara hesitantly took the couch in front of us looking around like she had never seen the place before, which I guess was true. Only a select few people knew where Drea lived. How did Cara know now?
