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“I know my place in this family, and it’s in this chair.”
“Tonight, your place is next to me. Not because I think you’re some kind of trophy to put on display but because you chose me to be here with you. I’m the luckiest fucking guy in this room, and no one is going to tell me differently.”
She stares at me as I stare at her, and then I stand to my full height and again hold my hand out for her.
After one breath in and then one long breath out, she takes my hand and stands.
People part and move out of our way, as together, the four of us move for the door. I glance once at Emma, but her eyes are locked on Goldie. She’s softly smiling like she’s so proud, and it’s a good fucking thing, not that I care. When it comes to Goldie and me, we are the only two people who matter.
We’re just about to the foyer, when Winston grabs her arm. “Where do you think you’re going? You’re not done playing,” he says to her like he has a right to be pissed off.
“Take your hand off her immediately.”
Recognizing that I’m vibrating with anger and two seconds from ripping his hand off his own body, he drops her arm.
“Cora, there’s still another two hours. You need to go back in there and play,” he says.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I ask him. “I don’t know who you people think you are, but you should be ashamed of yourselves. Cora is a member of this family, not your evening’s entertainment, and she’s a grown woman, not a child. You will refrain from speaking to her in such a way.”
“This doesn’t concern you, so I suggest you back off, or I’ll have you removed,” he says to me.
I’m taller than him, but like I’ve witnessed my entire life from other rich, stuck-up pricks, he doesn’t see the threat even when it’s staring him in the face. And I am. Mentally, I’ve caused him physical harm.
“Winston,” she calls out to get his attention. “I am tired, and I am done. If this is what I need to do for you, Dad, and Mom to love me, then I guess this is goodbye.” She glances at Emma, and a silent conversation passes between them. Then she turns back to him. “Love isn’t supposed to be conditional. It’s supposed to be unlimited, full, genuine, and without expectations.”
When she turns, we all follow her lead, and it’s at this moment that the senator and his wife walk in.
“Cora!” the woman calls out in delight. “I’m so happy you’re here. Are you leaving?” she asks. Meanwhile, her husband gives Winston a once-over and frowns.
“We are. We have an early morning, but we just thought we’d stop in and make an appearance.”
“I’m sorry we couldn’t get here sooner. Usually, they have you working, so I don’t get to chat with you, but I’d love to catch up sometime. Maybe we’ll make a trip to Horizons Valley.” She winks at us. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Winston’s cheek twitch in shock. Whether it’s at the friendship he apparently didn’t know about, or the fact that they know she lives in Horizons Valley, who knows.
“I would love that. If you’ll excuse us, it really was lovely to see you again.”
We turn for the door and see Freddy scowling while already holding our coats. He doesn’t say anything, but Winston calls out to her again.
“Cora.”
With her chin tipped high and her shoulders pulled back, she glances at him one last time. “Goodbye, Winston.”
The ding of the elevator.
The ringing in my ears.
The smell of her perfume as she stands next to me, holding my hand.
And the adrenaline running through, it’s all I can comprehend until we step outside into the cold rain. Clay holds Emma back to keep her under the awning, but I pull us so we’re off to the side, alone, and then spin her so my mouth can slam down on hers.
The pressure of her hands as they wrap around my face, the warmth of her lips, the taste of the rain and of her tongue, everything about this woman fuses with me, and I need her unlike I’ve ever needed anything before.
“I’m not sorry,” I mumble against her lips as I slip off my coat and wrap it around her. The moderately heavy rain has quickly soaked through our clothes. She shivers, and I swear she has never looked more beautiful.
Wiping my hands over her face, I push the wet hair back and lay my forehead against hers. Her hands have fallen to my chest where she’s tucked them between us to keep them warm. I think we both needed a moment to catch our breath and let the realization of how we just left her family sink in. I hope this is truly what she wants and she doesn’t feel pressured by me. I never want to make her feel anything less than who she is.
But then, she tilts her head so she can see me, says, “I’m not either,” and then returns my kiss with one of her own.
This kiss says, “Thank you for choosing me.”
