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Then, there she was.
Becca stopped briefly after getting off the bus and her eyes locked with his. For a moment, time stood absolutely still. Everything he’d rehearsed in his head completely disappeared and he was left with only one thing.
I think I’m in love with you.
He couldn’t tell her that. He had to play it cool.
Becca grinned and moved toward him. He took a few steps closer and she took off running, launching herself into his arms. Ethan spun her around in a circle. Her hands rested on his shoulders as she stared down at him and laughed.
“I didn’t think you’d actually come.”
Gently, he placed her on her feet. “Why wouldn’t I? I told you I would, so here I am.”
She reached up and brushed the hair from his forehead. “So you are,” she murmured.
Electricity burst from where her skin touched his. He reached up and snatched her hand to bring it to his lips. The stunned look on her face set him off balance, but only briefly. Ethan wanted to tell her right here, right now that his feelings were stronger than ever. But that wasn’t the plan.
He motioned toward the picnic basket he’d abandoned a few paces away. “Are you hungry? Or do you want to relax at Katrina’s first?”
She stared at the basket and laughed again. “What’s that?” Then her eyes swept over him and she grabbed his tie, rubbing it between her finger and thumb. “And what are you wearing? You’re not turning into some corporate nut, are you?”
“What? No.”
Her eyes softened. “Good, because I like you just the way you are.”
“You do?” he whispered.
Becca nodded. “That’s why I came?—”
Ethan placed a finger to her lips. “Not here. We have to?—”
She brushed his finger aside, grabbing it with her hand. “No more waiting. I’ve done enough waiting to last a million lifetimes. I came here for a reason, and I need to follow through. Let me say what I need to say?—”
“I think I’m in love with you,” Ethan blurted. “I think I’ve been in love with you since that morning we had coffee. Man, it might have even been the moment you stepped off that bus and saved me from Tina.” He pulled her closer, sweeping his hand behind her back and holding one of hers with the other. The rose fell to their feet but neither of them seemed to care enough to notice. “I let my own judgments stand in the way of my happiness. I was afraid you wouldn’t want me. What if it isn’t a learning disability? What if I’m just dumb?”
“Ethan,” she whispered, “you are the furthest thing from dumb. I don’t know of a single person who would have been able tohandle what you did as a child. Even as an adult, you have overcome so much. I was only trying to help you find resources if you needed them.” Her cheeks flushed and she looked away. “I should have discussed my idea with you before diving in and doing the research.”
Ethan hooked his finger beneath her chin and tilted it upward so he could get a clear view of her eyes. “You are amazing, you know that?”
Her lips curled into a small smile.
“I wouldn’t mind taking some classes or having someone evaluate me—as long as you’re there by my side.”
Becca’s eyes widened and her lips parted in a look of surprise. “So… that means…”
“That means I want to see where this might go. I want to start over. You have to believe me when I tell you I would give anything to have gotten your number at that engagement party so we could have started whatever this might be sooner. I feel like I’ve wasted so much time and all I want is… to be with you.”
Her eyes brimmed with emotion.
Or maybe it was his own.
Becca brushed at her bottom lashes with her knuckle and released a watery laugh. “Really?”
“Definitely,” he murmured, drawing her even closer. “Do you know how long I’ve kept my feelings for you a secret? All I need is for you to tell me I’m not the only one who feels this connection. I can’t be the only one who feels like he’s been dropped in the middle of a romance novel.”
She laughed again, this time louder. “You didn’t just say that.”
“I did.” He grinned back. “I want nothing more than for our love story to have a happily ever after.”
