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“You have an amazing family,” I whisper. “Why did you ever leave?”
Chase runs a hand down his face. “Honestly, I’m starting to think maybe my soul knew where you were and I just needed to find you.”
“That’s the cheesiest shit I’ve ever heard,” I say and yet my heart faints a bit at hearing it. I love it apparently. I lovehim.
“I love you,” I blurt, and Chase’s lips wobble a little.
“Good because I love you too.”
I feel my heart thump unsteadily in my chest but this time it’s not my SVT or stress, it’s excitement. It’s new beginnings.
“You are my exception, Chase,” I whisper, and he nods.
“You’re mine too.”
And with that, he extends his hand and we walk into the house. A new chapter, a new beginning, just the two of us.
The exceptions to our rules.
EPILOGUE
3 months later
Chase
“My dad is wearing flip-flops,” I whisper to Holden as the five of us walk down the beach. My parents and sister flew in yesterday, and this morning when my dad appeared in front of me wearing lime green sandals, I nearly died.
“He said his toes feel so cool,” Holden says with a snort and a smirk.
“Well, that’s very true. So much self-revelation on this island, I’m telling you.”
“Now we just have to work on the sunscreen,” Holden says softly, his brow scrunched. He didn’t believe me about the sunscreen until he met my dad. He had many long conversations with him about it while helping him around the farm.
When we finally flew back a week later, Holden still hadn’t managed to convince him to take the plunge. He now has his heart set on making sure he converts.
“I love it here!” Ginny says, bounding back from the water’s edge. Her cheeks are slightly burned, her hair almost blinding in the light. “I think I saw a turtle!”
“Yeah, just be careful in the water, Ginny. Got stung by that jellyfish, remember?”
She snorts and rolls her eyes. “Yeah, you did that just so Holden would pee on you, I know this.”
A laugh erupts out of Holden and he jumps toward Ginny, throwing his arm around her shoulder and pulling her into him. They grew close during our week back in South Dakota. My sister stuck to him like glue, and Holden did nothing to deter the affection. I think he was just as happy as I was when my sister landed on this island.
“I really don’t need to hear that,” my dad grumbles, pulling his hand down over his eyes. My mom is smirking at me, and I smile back. I love them, love how they instantly accepted Holden into their lives, how they didn’t let me apologize for leaving when it had been so needed.
I did anyways. Next time I’ll try and communicate and not just sneak off like some kind of thief. But they just accepted it. They accepted him. And fuck if that doesn’t make me so damn happy.
“So, he’s the one then?” my mom asks me when Holden and Ginny are out of earshot.
“Seems to be,” I say and then roll my lips between my teeth.
“When you know, you know.”
“Yeah, seems I knew the minute I saw his ass.”
My mom plugs her ears and shakes her head, laughing softly. “No. Nope. I don’t want to hear it.”
I feel my cheeks heating but it’s not like they don’t know about my obsession with Holden’s butt. He mentioned it once, just let it slip from his sexy mouth, and Dixon and my sister tease me about it almost daily.
