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“For this.” He held his arms out as wide as he could to gesture at the surrounding arena. “You gave back to me something I never knew I missed. And because I have Midnight and the clinic and the ranch, I’m going to be okay. And so are you.”
She threw her arms around him, burying her face in his neck.
It hurt like hell, but Eli didn’t care. He held her as tight as he could. He’d let her go eventually. He’d let her figure life out the same way he was beginning to. But just like boxing up his memories of Tess didn’t mean he had to forget, saying goodbye to Beth today didn’t mean he had to say goodbye for good.
“I love you,” she whispered against him. “I love you. I love you. I love you.”
She always said it like this now, the three in a row. And Eli swore he’d never tire of it. It was his favorite song even if it lacked any sort of tune.
A knot formed in his throat, and even though he’d said the words before and meant them more than ever now, he was afraid if he opened his mouth, the only word that would come out would be stay.
So he kissed her, tasting the salt of their mingled tears. He kissed her and kissed her and kissed her and hoped that she knew.
“I’ll circle until you text me,” Boone told him, glancing over his shoulder after they pulled up to the sign denoting Beth’s airline.
“You’re coming in with me?” Beth asked, eyes wide. She wasn’t crying anymore, but her green eyes were still glassy pools, like they were waiting for him to be out of sight before spilling over again. He wasn’t ready to let her do that. He wasn’t ready for any of it. Just a few minutes more.
“I’m going as far as they’ll let me go,” he told her. Then he glanced back at Boone. “Thanks, bro. Text you in a bit.”
Before he left, Boone dutifully fulfilled his role as driver, lifting Beth’s case out of the trunk. She checked in curbside with the skycap, which left nothing else to do but walk her to security.
So Eli followed her inside, and for several awkward, quiet moments, he combed the recesses of his mind for what to say to make any of this better.
Suddenly Beth just stopped, right there in the middle of people rushing to get to the TSA line.
“What’s wrong?” Eli asked. “Did you forget your ID?” Was it wrong for him to hope she forgot her ID?
Beth crossed her arms and stared at him. “Did you know the female ferret will die if she doesn’t mate once she goes into heat?”
Eli’s eyes widened, and before he could stop it from happening, he barked out a laugh.
“Shit!” he hissed, grabbing his side.
“Sorry!” Beth cried. “I thought we needed a tension breaker.”
He shook his head, still pressing his palm against his tender ribs. “We did.” He allowed himself a softer, gentler laugh this time. “God, we really did. I just wasn’t expecting… You remembered that?”
She cupped his cheek in her hand. “Oh, sweet Dr. Murphy,” she began with what he hoped was feigned condescension. “A girl never forgets the first time a guy tells her about the female ferret’s insatiable libido.”
He turned his face into her palm and kissed it. “I know you’re making fun of me right now, and I don’t care,” he told her. “Because what you’re really saying is that I made a lasting impression on you from day one, and I’m okay with that.”
“The lastingest,” she said, both hands clasping around his neck.
“The mightiest,” he replied, placing a hand on each of her hips.
And then he saw it, over her shoulder, the real reason for her sudden halt. Less than twenty feet away stood the entrance to the TSA security line. And of course, on today of all days, there was no line. Passengers instead moved swiftly through the roped-off, zigzagging walkway.
“We made good time on the drive,” he said softly. “You’re not in a rush, right?”
She shook her head. “But if I don’t go, I won’t go.”
“And you have to go.” He wasn’t asking because there was no question. “Because you’re going to nail this audition, and you’re going to make it onstage this Christmas. There’s no way this isn’t happening for you, Beth. The universe isn’t that much of an asshole, and I believe in you too much for it not to be true.”
He realized they were that couple now, the one you saw every so often while traveling, unwilling to let go of one another and not giving a shit who stared as they walked by. Eli might have rolled his eyes had he seen such a couple before today. Not anymore.
She sucked in a breath. “You always believed I could do this. Even when my sister tried to convince me that my doctors knew me better than I knew myself.”
“Always,” he said without hesitation.
