He smiles, but keeps his voice low, like this conversation is just for me. “I meant every word, Addie. But I don’t want you to feel pressured. I just needed you to know.”
I blink back the sudden sting in my eyes. “So, you want me to stay, huh?”
“I do,” he says, soft but unwavering.
“Good.” I let out a shaky laugh, dragging the moment out as I dare to play with it. “Because I already signed the contract.”
His brow furrows, confusion and disbelief flickering across his face. “But… your landlord said you handed in your notice. She said you were moving out.”
I nod, unable to stop myself from grinning like a fool. “Well, I was hoping to have somewhere else to live next season.”
His eyes flicker, and the smile that breaks across his face feels like sunlight.
“Oh, yeah?” he teases softly, like he’s afraid to believe it too quickly. “Somewhere with better lighting?”
“Somewhere with you,” I say, heart swelling. “Anywherewith you.”
His eyes search mine like he’s double-checking reality, like he needs every inch of my face to confirm this isn’t something he’s imagining. “Why?” he asks quietly.
I smile, and this time it doesn’t feel shaky at all.
“Because I broke my sixth rule,” I say.
His brow furrows slightly. “I don’t… I don’t remember what it was.”
“I never told you,” I say, shaking my head. “Rule number six was to never fall in love.”
His entire face stills.
The noise of the ballroom, the lights, the world—everything falls away until it’s just us standing in the aftermath of something I’ve spent my whole life avoiding.
“I broke my rule,” I continue, quieter now, but clearer than I’ve ever been, “because I’m in love with you, Oliver. Fully. Madly. Completely.”
“Addie,” he whispers, stepping closer as he cups my jaw with both hands. There’s a moment, just a heartbeat, when the world seems to stop.
He kisses me like it’s not an ending or a beginning, but the moment everything finally makes sense—like every look, every almost, every hesitation has been leading here. It’s soft at first, then deeper, like neither of us has any intention of letting go of what we’ve just said out loud.
Because I’m staying.
Because I’m his.
And for the first time in my life, I don’t feel like I’m choosing between fear and love.
I feel like they’ve finally stopped being opposites.
48
top flight
THE ANGEL (NORTH LONDON FOREVER) BY LOUIS DUNFORD
I walk alone through the streets of North London. I’ve walked these streets a thousand times before, but today feels different. Today they feel like my streets.
I used to walk this route with my head down, hands shoved into my pockets, eyes focused on an email or an incoming public relations disaster. I counted steps like they were borrowed time. I told myself not to settle in, not to look at this place enough to love it. Just stick to the plan.
But now? I look up.
Luckily, life had a better plan for me than the one I made, because now I see this place, and it sees me. Red and blue scarves drape from the windows lining the streets. Painted faces skip down the road. Every corner echoes with the clink of glassware at pubs already packed at midday.
