“What sort of jerk would ghost you like that?” he asked in a gravelly voice. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I’m so sorry I put you through that. Once I sorted things out in my head, I could only see one thing that really mattered.” He twisted a lock of my hair around his finger, tracing it slowly to the tip. “And that one thing… is us.”
I stroked his cheek. “That means a lot, and believe me, I get it. After all, I did the same thing to you.” I wore a guilty smile. “Shall we call it even?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
We danced beneath the blanket of clouds, surrounded by the sweet scents of summer drifting through the night air. My hands linked around his back as we leaned in, gazing at each other until his mouth found mine, igniting a fire within me. His fingers glided down my back like satin as his heart thumped wildly against mine… until it felt as though we were one.
As he held me close, everything else faded into nothingness. He pulled away gently, his eyes glistening as his chin dropped to his chest. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Ivy Lawrence—”
Cries of joy and gasps of delight echoed around us as people huddled together, staring and pointing at the sky.
We stood by the river, our heads tilted upward toward the drizzling sky as a fountain of colors spilled across the canvas-like darkness, and my hand flew to my cheek in amazement.
“The laser show. Perfect timing.” Karson beamed. “I’ve been looking forward to this,” he said, his eyes glued upward.
Holding each other tightly, we watched as explosions of light transformed into hearts, peonies, and stars, synchronized to the beat of the music.
Everyone oohed and aahed as scattered beams of light trickled down over us like liquid. All around, the crowd reached out, running their hands through the beautiful shards of light.
“This is incredible!” I laughed. “You guys organized all this?”
“Full credit goes to Dyson. The guy stops at nothing,” he said with a chuckle. “But there is one thing I had a hand in.”
“Oh, yeah?”
His face lit up. “Look up.”
As I raised my eyes to the sky, a flood of bright red light erupted, forming a rose. All eyes fixed above as letters began to form beneath it.
“Oh, look, I wonder what it’s going to say!”My lips parted, and as each word appeared I read them out slowly.
I—L O V E—Y O U—I V Y
My hands covered my mouth as I looked at the wonder before my eyes.He loves me!My heart melted all over again.My god, how I love this man.
Tears blurred my vision before I could blink them away.I can’t believe he did all this for me without even knowing if I’d show up.Turning toward him, I took his face into my hands and kissed him.
A hard, demanding kiss…
A kiss that showed him how much I wanted him—and just how much he meant to me.
A kiss that made it clear there was no one else for me.
Just him. His hungry response silenced everything else, and the world faded away.
“So,” I breathed a few minutes later, “I didn’t organize anything spectacular for you, Karson Wells. But I love you too.”
He pumped his fist into the air, breaking into a victory dance on the spot. “Ivy, you amaze me. You’re kind and strong. Beautiful and funny. And straight-up the most incredible person I’veever met. I can’t believe how lucky I am. You’re all I want, and all I—”
I pressed my fingers to his lips. “You’re all I want too, Karson,” I whispered. “You’re the bravest, most thoughtful, cleverest guy I’ve ever met… not to mention seriously hot.”
He grinned sheepishly, looking down at me, love softening his face.
“And I can barely think straight when I’m near you. I never used to know what I wanted in a guy. But now I know. It’s you. Not just the good bits, but all of you.”
In an instant, his mouth was on mine as a fire raged through my body.
And then I knew without a shadow of doubt.
