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Then, the words “I love you, Rosie,” from the lips of the man I loved were whispered in my ear. “I love you like I’d never loved anything before. And I’ll love you for the rest of my life if you let me.” And before I could even process what I was doing, I was turning in his arms and I was looking into his brown eyes, giving him the easiestyesI’d ever have to give anyone.
EPILOGUEA little more than a year later…
Lucas
“You sure you have everything?” she asked me again. “That all your things are in the boxes Charo will ship and your essentials are in your backpack?”
“Preciosa,”I told her, the grin in my face growing impossibly big, “you’re all I need with me.”
“You wouldn’t care if you forgot your socks?” Her voice was strawberry sweet. “Or your underwear? That is a very annoying thing to replace.”
“Couldn’t care less.” And I wasn’t lying. “Less layers for you to peel off me.”
She let out a soft sigh. I knew the sound very well. I’d grown very familiar with those light exhales of breath, with what they signaled. I’d learned in the many, many occasions we’d had to resort to our phones in the time we’d been apart.
We’d tried to see each other as much and as often as we could, but it was still not enough. It would never be. I still counted the time I didn’t have her by my side.
Ten weeks, five days, and fourteen hours since her last visit.
And this time, not only had I been without her, but withoutTaco, too, as Rosie had taken him with her when she’d returned to New York.
“I know,ángel.” I lowered my voice so the cabdriver wouldn’t hear me say the next words. Not because I cared if he did, but because they were only for her. “I’m also dying to touch you. To have my hands on you. To feel you under me.”
Another sigh came, but this one was different. It was the one that told me she missed far more than my touch. And I was right there with her. I missed every single thing about her.
“Oh, well,” Rosie finally said. “At least, I hope you didn’t forget your toothbrush because sharing one is a big step.”
She clicked her tongue, and her teasing me instead of saying what we were both thinking—how hard long distance was and how much we hated it—made me want to jump out of the cab, into traffic, and run to her. Sprint.
Something that after the physical therapy plan I’d religiously followed I was able to do without a limp or major consequences. On the occasion.
“Preciosa, there’s no step we’re not ready for.”
And there wasn’t. I would have already married her if we had been living in the same time zone. Walking away from her that one time over a year ago was something I was having trouble forgetting or coming to terms with. I’d almost lost Rosie, the love of my goddamn life, in my attempt to protect her, to protect myself too, as I’d been able to finally understand after my due sessions with a therapist. But just like Dr. Vera said, it’s not about forgetting, but about forgiving yourself and putting in the work to be better. And I tried every day to do that. I’d also learned to live with who I was today without resenting what I’d lost. And I sure as hell knew what I wanted in my future.
I had always wanted Rosie. But now I was ready to take everything and anything she’d give me. I was counting the seconds to start a life with her, in New York, while I attended culinary school to build a new future for myself. While she thrived in her career as a romance writer. While we built a future together.
“You’re in the cab, then?” Rosie asked, jolting me back to the conversation. “On your way to the airport?”
“I’m in the cab, yes.” Only I wasn’t on my way to the airport; I was on my way to her. I’d landed in New York an hour ago, as much as Rosie thought I hadn’t boarded my flight yet.
“Ugh, I already feel like the last ten weeks have been the longest of my life. And now, I must wait another full night. It’s not fair.”
I watched Rosie’s building come into view. “I’m almost there, Rosie.”
“I know.” She sighed. “But I want you here now.”
The cab pulled up. “What will you do when you see me,ángel?”
A deep, sultry laugh left her. “What will I not do?”
I pulled out my wallet and paid the driver. “Describe it for me.”
“I’ll jump in your arms,” she said, no hesitation.
I hung my trusted and beat backpack on a shoulder and made my way to her building. I pushed at the entrance door and found it open. I made a note of getting someone to fix it and went in.
She continued, “I’ll cover you in kisses. Your mouth, your neck, your eyelids, your ears, everything I can reach.”
