But as he hovered over me, positioning himself between my thighs, I knew this wasn't an ending. It was a beginning, or maybe a continuation of something we'd started years ago and never finished.
And when he slid inside me, it wasn’t just heat — it was homecoming. Slow at first, like he wanted to learn every inch of me. Every breath. Every way my body whispered yes. Then the rhythm shifted, deepened, turned desperate and reverent all at once until the only sound left was the thud of our hearts chasing each other through the dark.
After stars exploded behind my eyelids and he growled my name as he came, we stayed tangled together, our skin slick, too wrecked to move. The world outside didn’t exist… not the town, not the rumors, not the damn list that had ruined everything. Just this. Him. Me. Us.
Trace brushed his thumb along my hip, lazy and tender. “Where have you been all my life?” he murmured against my hair.
The question sliced right through me. Right here, I wanted to say. Always right here. But fear had a way of building fences, and I’d spent years pretending the gate was locked.
His breathing slowed, steady against my back, but sleep wouldn’t come for me. My brain spun with everything I should’ve said, everything I still hadn’t. I’d come here to confess. To finally tell him the truth. But now… with his arm heavy over my waist and his warmth sinking into my bones, I couldn’t bring myself to shatter it. Not yet.
If pretending bought me one more night like this, I’d take it. I’d take every second. So I pressed closer, chasing the steady rhythm of his heartbeat until the guilt dulled to something that almost felt like peace.
Tomorrow, I promised myself. Tomorrow, I’ll tell him.
Tonight, I’d let myself believe he was mine.
CHAPTER 7
TRACE
I woke up with Sabrina curled against my chest, her dark hair spilling over my shoulder like silk. Morning light filtered through the navy curtains, casting a golden glow around my bedroom that made the past week feel like something out of a dream.
We'd fallen into a routine so easily it scared me. She'd show up at my cabin most evenings after closing the coffee shop, sometimes with takeout from the diner, sometimes with groceries so we could cook together. We'd talk about the wedding preparations, about nothing important, about everything except what mattered most. Then I'd pull her into bed and lose myself in the warmth of her skin, and the soft sounds she made when I touched her just right.
It should have felt perfect, and in a lot of ways, it did. But there was still something underneath it all. A kind of tension I couldn't quite name. Like we were both holding our breath, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Sabrina stirred against me, her palm flattening against my chest. "What time is it?" she mumbled.
"Early. You don't have to get up yet."
She lifted her head, blinking at me with sleep lingering in her gorgeous hazel eyes. Her lips were swollen from last night's kisses, and there was a faint mark on her neck from where I'd gotten a little carried away. The sight of it sent a possessive thrill through me. She was finally mine.
"I should probably head home soon," she said, but she didn't move. Instead, she traced circles on my chest, her touch making my pulse skip. "Paige opens today, but I want to get there early to prep for a catering order."
“Is Mimi still driving you up a wall?”
"You have no idea." She laughed, but it sounded forced. "Yesterday she decided she wanted the coffee service moved from the reception to the ceremony. Something about 'caffeine as a love ritual.'"
I ran my fingers through her hair, both surprised and not surprised at all at how right she felt in my arms. "At least it'll all be over soon."
Something flickered across her face, too quick for me to read. "Yeah. Soon."
The word hung between us, loaded with meaning I didn’t understand. I’d noticed it more and more over the past week. There were moments when she seemed to retreat into herself, like she was carrying something heavy that she wouldn't let me help with.
"Everything okay?" I asked.
"I’m just tired." She pressed a kiss to my collarbone, effectively ending the conversation.
I wasn't ready to let it go. Not when I could feel her pulling away even while she laid there naked in my arms.
"Sabrina." I waited until she looked at me. "What's going on? And don't say nothing. I can tell something's bothering you."
Her gaze slipped away from mine. "It's just the wedding stress. And all the media attention. Having that podcaster back in town..." She shrugged. "It brings up a lot of stuff, you know?"
There it was again… that careful distance whenever the Ex-List came up. I'd tried to bring it up a few times over the past week, wanting to clear the air completely, but she always found a way to change the subject.
"We never really talked about all that," I said, trying to be careful with my words so she didn’t shut down. "The list, the podcast. What it was like for you when everything blew up."
