Page 120 of Safe Place

…I think I’m finally beginning to feel joy. Real, warm, slow-burning joy. Because I have something to look forward to. Someone to look forward to.

…He’s always there. Watching out for me. Loving me in ways I didn’t think I was allowed to be loved. I want to let him carry the burden. Let him protect me. Let myself be chosen.

…Is this what it feels like to be someone’s first thought? To be wanted just for existing? I’ve never been someone’s priority. Never been loved like this.

…I’m free. Free from the people haunting me in my thoughts and my nightmares. I’m not the same anymore. I feel like I can face anything. And I have someone to fall back on.

…I love him. God, I love him. Micah Vale is everything. And somehow…somehow, he’s mine. How did I get so lucky?

Her words are raw and soft and sacred. Pieces of her heart spilled in ink. Things she never said out loud. Things she never thought she could. There are things about Poppy and work and school, but I see so much of my name.

Every line is a piece of her I never knew I needed. And with each one, I fall for her all over again.

Not just for who she is now, but for the girl who survived. For the girl who kept going. For the girl who never asked to be saved, but still somehow saved me.

My throat tightens. I blink up at the ocean, biting the inside of my cheek to keep the tears at bay.

God, I knew I made the right choice. I’m the lucky one. It was always me.

She’s watching me, nervous and beautiful and brave.

I close the notebook gently and slide it to the side.

Then I reach for her, tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, and say:

“Sophie, I love you. More than I’ve ever loved anything. More than I thought I was capable of. You are, without a doubt, the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

Her eyes well with tears.

And when she leans in to kiss me, I know—this is what it feels like to be home.

SOPHIE

The planks are still warm from the sun under our bare feet. We're heading back to the bungalow after a picnic dinner on the beach.

The sky is so beautiful—painted in lavender and rose gold. And I’m full of fresh seafood and mocktails.

“I still can’t believe it,” I murmur. “I’d never even been out of the country before. And now I’m in Bora Bora.”

Micah looks over at me, his thumb brushing over my fingers as he laces them with his.

“You remembered I always wanted to come here.” I say, barely above a whisper.

“I told you I remember everything you tell me,” he says simply.

My heart twists.

“I’ll pay you back for my half,” I add, trying to lighten the weight in my chest. “As soon as I can.”

He stops walking and turns to me, gently but firmly. “Sophie. What’s mine is yours. There’s no paying me back.”

Before I can respond, he tugs open the door to our over-water bungalow and steps aside so I can walk in.

The moment I do, I freeze.

There’s a trail of rose petals leading through the space—candles glowing on every surface, golden and soft. The bed is covered in petals, and the canopy glows in the flickering light, like something out of a dream.

And when I turn around—he’s on one knee.