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Derek’s heart was suddenly beating hard and fast for a completely different reason. “I was hoping I could convince you to stay here, with me.”
Her face filled with confusion, which surprised him. He’d outright told her he wanted to convince her to stay here with him.
She edged away from him. “I can’t stay here. My mom, Aunt Elise, my work and competing. Everything is in Boston.”
He blinked at her. “Elle, I just told you I’ll never walk away from you, and I won’t, but my family needs me. Kiera, my dad, all of them. I’ve been away too long. Could we work out a compromise? Would your mum and aunt move here? There’s plenty of room, and thanks to Steffan, we have top medical care for your mum’s MS treatments. We could fly to competitions to keep going with Ninja Warrior. We could fly Aunt Elise to see her son and daughter-in-law.”
She stared at him. Then she sprung off his lap and started pacing the patio. He stood and faced her, not sure how to make this work.
“Elle.” He stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Love. If you want to live in Boston, we’ll live in Boston. I can buy my own jet and fly to visit my family often.”
She stared at him, her lip quivering and tears making her green eyes bright. “But you want to be here.”
“I do,” he admitted.
“I hate the thought of making you live in Boston when you want to be in this beautiful place with your amazing family.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “When your dad told me that I was more important than any car…” She dashed the tears with her knuckle. “I always dreamed of a dad like that. But Derek, why have you stayed in America so long if you wanted to be here?”
“You.” He smiled and lifted his eyebrows.
“Because I was a ‘challenge you will win’?” She arched an eyebrow.
“What?”
“You said that to Nash.”
He searched his brain and remembered saying it. “I didn’t know you overheard and I’m sorry if that bothered you. I was posturing, telling that muscle head to back off because you were mine.” He splayed his hands and hoped she didn’t think he was a jerk.
She studied him, and then she shook her head. “So possessive.”
“You aren’t a challenge, Elle. You’re everything to me.”
“Better.” She smiled. “Okay, tell me why you stayed in America so long.”
He was glad she’d moved past the ‘challenge’ comment.
“I originally moved to California to escape after my mum’s death. I graduated with my master’s degree in sports medicine the spring before she passed and was working with Steffan and helping young athletes recoup and reach their full potential. But then she died and nothing was the same. All the pain, all the memories, my family ripped apart. It was selfish, but I just needed to leave, to do something different.”
She nodded her understanding.
“I’d been doing Ninja Warrior competitions on the side, but I put my whole focus into it and worked with top trainers in San Diego. Then I met you at a competition in March. I loved how you could tease with me and of course I was drawn to your beauty and work ethic, but it was at the city finals in Boston. When you fell on the Invisible Ladder but kept cheering for everybody. When we had that moment, that look, that gave me the strength to make it to the top—that’s when I knew you were the woman for me.”
“You just teased and flirted with me all the time.”
He smiled. “I’m a dumb boy, Elle. We don’t know how to woo a lady properly. Obviously. I moved to Boston after the finals in Vegas, simply hoping you’d give me a chance.”
She swallowed. “I feel like such a jerk that I always turned you down for dinner.”
“It’s all right. I was pretty lonely, missing my family, Augustine, my friends, but I wasn’t willing to give up on you.”
“Which brings us back to you wanting to be here, not in Boston.”
“The location doesn’t matter.” He shrugged. “I’ll come see my family and you can come with me if you want. We’ll make it work. I love you, Elle, and I have for months. I’ll do what is best for you.”
She let out a heart-wrenching sob and threw herself against him. Derek held her close. It wouldn’t be easy to make everything work, and he wouldn’t be here with his family, but he’d do it, for Ellery.
Chapter Thirteen
The wedding day dawned absolutely gorgeous, but Ellery was convinced most days did in Augustine. She and Derek had kissed and held each other and shared stories from childhood on up. She wished she could’ve met his ‘mum.’ The queen sounded like a fun, classy, and sweet lady.
