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“Blondie, if you tell me you’re staying then I don’t care who helped you come to that conclusion. I owe them everything.” I lower my forehead to hers and her hands curl into my shirt. “Second chances aren’t really my thing. When I screw up, it tends to be permanent.”
“You didn’t screw up. You were protecting your heart,” she says softly, her lips finding mine. She tastes like fruity lip gloss and tears and hope and something that’s a whole lot like love. “We’re two damaged people trying to find our way in the world.”
“I’m so glad you’re staying,” I whisper against her neck. I’m a little overcome, and it’s a new feeling. A terrifying feeling. But I’d rather be scared and working toward something great than hiding like I have been.
“I’m excited to meet Zoe,” she says. “I know what a big deal it is to you and I’m honoured.”
“She’s the best part of our family, trust me.” My heart is so full it wants to burst. “Not like her cranky old uncle.”
“I imagine you’re not the kind of man who inspires halfway feelings with anyone you come across. People will either love you or hate you.” Drew sucks in a breath. “And I don’t feel halfway about you. Not at all.”
“Howdoyou feel about me?”
For a moment she says nothing—she simply draws her lower lip between her teeth and looks at me with such a penetrating stare it’s like she can see right into my heart. Past all the defences I’ve spent years fortifying. Past all my baggage. Past the lies I tell myself. Right through to the little boy I promised I would protect forever against abandonment and pain.
The part of me I’ve exposed now.
“I feel like this could be it.” She swallows. “Like it could be everything.”
“Then let’s not waste a minute.” I kiss her hard and deep, sliding my hands down her spine to cup the sweet curve of her backside, holding her hard against me.
“You can’t even wait until we get home?” She tosses her head back and laughs, her eyes sparkling with mischief like they did the very first night I met her. The moment I was changed forever.
“I almost threw everything away,” I say, kissing her neck and sliding my hand up her thigh. The moment she melts against me I feel like a king. “I’ve got to make sure we don’t waste a minute.”
“Don’t worry, Mr. Suit.” She loops her arms around my neck. “Forever isalmostenough time for me to do everything I want to do with you.”
“Almost?” I chuckle. “What did I ever do to deserve you?”
EPILOGUE
Drew
One year later...
I’VEFINALLYCONVINCEDFlynn to take a week off. It’s only taken me booking and rescheduling this holiday four times to get to this point, but I don’t care. He’s dedicated to his work, to making a difference in people’s lives. And the latest trials have kept him in the office for long, long hours. But there’s hope, progress. My man won’t stop until he’s done everything in his power to help people.
Myman. Some days I still don’t believe that I get to say that.
And, to soften the blow, we’re flying first class, in one of those pods that isdefinitelygoing to aid my “lifetime fantasy” checklist. Mile-high club, here I come! Good thing I don’t know anyone who works for this airline. It was one of the reasons I declined the uber-cheap standby tickets my boss offered me.
I look over my suitcase, trying to think of anything I might have forgotten. Toothbrush, wide-tooth comb to get all the saltwater tangles out of my hair, Kindle stuffed full of smutty novels to give me some ideas for other things to add to our list.
Then I squint. Something looks amiss. I swear I had my lacy white beach cover-up sitting on top of my jean shorts. But now it sits in a neat little roll that hasallthe hallmarks of my type A “life is better with packing cubes” boyfriend.
“Flynn!” I crouch down and roll my eyes. “Stop repacking my suitcase!”
He does it all the time with my clothing. I toss a bunch of stuff into one ofmydrawers and he’ll go through and fold everything. Seriously, I wonder sometimes if he came out of the womb folding T-shirts.
Marie Kondo hasnothingon Flynn.
Grumbling to myself, I reach for the neatly rolled piece of white fabric. I’ll pack my suitcase however the hell I please, thank you very much. But the second I unroll it, a little blue box pops out and I freeze. Holy shit. Is that what I think it is?
For a moment I can’t breathe. In the sunshine streaming through the bedroom window, the velvet shimmers as though it’s beckoning me. I reach out and brush my fingertip over the surface, feeling the pile soften under my touch.
Flynn hasn’t responded to my yelling, so I grab the box, debating whether or not to open it. Part of me knows a good partner would stash it back in its place and attempt to roll the beach cover-up as neatly as him. While I’ve been changed by loving him with my whole heart for the past twelve months, I’m stillthatperson who tries to sneak a look at Christmas presents under the tree and ferrets out all his hiding spots in the week before my birthday.
Biting my lip, I open the box and gasp. The ring nestled inside features a huge stone, black as the ink Flynn uses with his fancy fountain pen. It’s an oval shape and the band has a collection of glittering diamonds hammered into it.
