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ppy tears.
His lips lowered and touched mine reverently. “Why?”
I brought my forehead down on his and dragged in a shaky breath. “Staying with you might break my heart one day, Ren.” He opened his mouth to speak, but I quickly covered it with a cupped hand, silencing him. “But leaving you… leaving you will definitely break it. I couldn’t do it,” I whispered, tears clogging my throat. “I couldn’t leave you.”
Eyes intent on mine, he pressed a soft kiss to the skin of my palm, then moved it gently aside.
“Staying with me won’t break your heart, Ri,” he promised, voice thick and cracking with emotion. “Loving you is the only thing in my life that’s worth a damn. I’ll never give you a reason to doubt that. And I’m never letting you go again.” The corners of his lips curved up. “I fucking adore you, Riley Mason.”
There were a thousand things I could say, and I’d get to them. Right now, I settled for the only thing that mattered. “I love you.”
His eyes slid closed and his arms tightened around me.
It was simple. It was everything.
It was worth it.
Epilogue
Riley
“Riley Mason.”
A chorus of hollers went up. Blushing, I ducked my head, moving quickly across the stage to accept my diploma. Lip muscles straining to control the smile that wanted to break out, I tipped my head to the seats in the auditorium, knowing my mom and Liss would be there, grinning widely. My gaze snaked past them, muscles loosening as a small smile formed. My eyes carried on, until they rested on the face I’d been looking for. He stood a head taller than everyone else around him. His hands were jammed in his pockets, hair tousled on top, just the way I liked it, especially when I knew it was my fingers that had been raking through it. He still took my breath away.
Those dark eyes met mine and I stumbled, righting myself just before it became obvious. He’d caught it. His lips twitched, humor glinting in his soulful eyes. Beyond that, there was pride, shining brightly, aimed directly at me. My heart melted. And his lips moved, forming silent words. I love you.
Biting my lip, I nodded, glancing away quickly before the moisture that welled in my eyes spilled over. I couldn’t cry in front of everyone, not even happy tears. Stepping off the stage, I couldn’t resist a peek back. His eyes were still on me. Overflowing with love, and I couldn’t stop myself from blowing him a kiss.
The smirk I’d once thought I hated tugged at his lips, hitting me right in the middle of my chest, and he winked. Cocky son of a...
But I loved it. I loved him.
In the past three years, we'd argued, we'd fought. We’d said things we didn’t mean and made stupid mistakes. We were learning. Learning that we wouldn’t always agree. We’d do stupid stuff to piss each other off. Hell, there were times we wouldn’t even like each other, and the distance had been hard, for both us.
But I’d never stopped loving him, not for one minute. And that meant we fought through the rest. Love first, and everything else will follow. I’d heard that somewhere once. And it was true.
Two sets of slim arms enfolded me in their embrace and squeezed me to death, squealing and jabbering in my ear. Smiling wide, I returned their enthusiasm, gripping tight until we broke apart. Liss and my mom stepped back.
And there he was.
Rising on the balls of his feet, looking down at me. I practically skipped to him, planting my face into the hard plains of his chest as my emotions burst free. His strong arms came around me, crushing me to him and lifting until my feet left the ground. My head rose, lips finding his, and I squeezed my eyes tights as our mouth fused. It was chaste, we had an audience, after all, but I felt it all the way to my dangling toes. His low growl suggested he did, too. I grinned, breaking away, and met his gaze.
“I’m damn proud of you, baby,” he said roughly, staring into my eyes.
“Thank you,” I said, voice oddly shy.
“Okay, okay, put her down, lover boy. We got shit to do, places to be and all that jazz. She’s my best friend... gimme.”
Reno’s lips curved in a reluctant grin, his head shaking and eyes rolling in his head. Lowering me to the floor, he dropped a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose and tapped my butt. “Get out of here. See you for dinner?”
I nodded with a sniffle, eyes glazing over. Wow, emotion overload.
My mom, Liss, and I had the rest of the day.
Tonight, was mine and Reno’s. He had plans, the kind I wasn’t privy to just yet. But as long as they included getting naked at some point, I didn’t really care. I took two paces away, changed my mind, and rushed back to him, fitting my lips to his for one last kiss. I took him by surprise, but he caught on quick enough, hands gripping my hips and mouth latching onto mine.
Flames. I broke off before we got carried away, but the glazed look in his hooded eyes told me I might have waited too long. Flashing him a grin, I waved and took off.
