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She shook her head, eyes glassy. “No.”

It was final.

Definitive.

The knife twisted deeper, carving me open.

“If I’m committing to someone,” she said, voice thick with emotion, “I’m doing it fully. There’s no way a relationship can last with that much distance. I want the whole thing, Colton.”

I took another step, closing the space between us even more.

Nowhere for her to run. Nowhere to hide.

Her legs hit the footboard of the bed, and I caged her in—not touching, not forcing, just there. Close enough to feel the heat between us.

With a shaky inhale, I reached out, cradling her cheek in my palm, my thumb stroking the soft skin.

“Then I come to you,” I murmured. “I’ll buy a place in the city. Hell, I’ll buy the entire fucking apartment complex you live in. I don’t care what it takes or what it costs. I just need to be close to you.”

Eleanor broke, piece by piece, as a single tear slipped from her eye, catching on my thumb. Then another one and…another one.

Her lips parted, trembling slightly. “The city isn’t built for you, Colton,” she whispered.

Maybe not.

“But you are,” I said, my voice raw with conviction. “You are mine. You’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted, ever dreamed about, Eleanor.”

She didn’t speak, simply stared into my eyes, letting the weight of my words settle between us. I had laid everything at her feet—my heart, my soul, every last piece of me. I had nothing left to hide. From the moment she walked into that bar, I had been powerless to deny her anything.

“Tell me you don’t love me,” I murmured. “Tell me I’m imagining this. That I’m a fool.” I searched her face, my pulse hammering as she drew in a slow breath. “I know you feel this too. I know you’re just as consumed by it as I am.”

Her lips twitched like she was going to speak, and for a moment, I braced myself for the worst. Then, she reached up, her delicate fingers covering my hand with her own.

“I can’t lie to you,” she whispered. “I won’t lie to you.” Her thumb traced my cheek, a touch so light it made my chest ache. “I love you, Colton. I love the man you are. The way you make me feel alive.”

The air in my lungs whooshed out in relief. My heart kicked, swelling with something fierce and unshakable. Knowing a woman like her could love a man like me? I was so damn lucky.

Then, she pulled away.

“But this won’t work,” she said softly. “We have our own lives. Our own businesses. We’re on opposite sides of the country. How do we make time for each other?”

I shook my head. She didn’t understand the weight of what I was saying, what I was doing here as I confessed my love for her as I’d never done before.

“I don’t think I’ve made myself clear,” I said, my voice thick with emotion. “I am so deeply, madly in love with you that the thought of living without you brings me to my fucking knees.”

I sank to the floor before her—straight to my knees.

She stood over me, her breath uneven, her body trembling. I pressed my hands to her hips, grounding myself in the warmth of her.

“You are it for me, Eleanor.” My voice was barely a whisper, but I knew she heard me.

She sagged slightly, like the fight inside her was unraveling. Her fingers slid into my hair, threading through the strands as though memorizing the feel of me.

“How do we know this isn’t just infatuation?” she asked, her voice breaking. “What if, once we’re apart, it all fades?”

I’d asked myself the same thing a hundred times, but this was different. She was different.

“Because I don’t beg, Eleanor,” I said simply. “And here I am, begging you.”