I take her hand and press the key into her palm.“Now you can let yourself in whenever you want.”
She looks down, frowning for a second, like her brain’s catching up to what just happened.Then her breath hitches.Her eyes lift to mine.“You’re giving me a key to your place?”
“Yeah.”My throat tightens.“I told you, I would move you in if you let me.”
For a second, she doesn’t say anything; she just stares at the key, thumb tracing the small horse charm.Then she whispers, “You’re serious?”
“As a heart attack.”
She lets out a shaky laugh and wraps her arms around my neck, whispering against my ear, “Nate, this is crazy.Are you sure?”
And that’s when the flashes start.When people start calling out our names, that's when the questions start.I fucking forgot they were there.
Tessa pulls her arms away and wraps them around herself, like she too forgot we were in public, like she needs to protect herself from this moment.
I tighten my arm around her.“Ignore them,” I say lowly.“Just look at me.”
And she does.Her big dark blue eyes lock on mine, and she gives me a nod.Like she's telling me she's here with me, she trusts me.
I move her away from the media group and leave her with my family.
By the time I make it out of the building, the night’s cool, but my blood’s still running hot.The city lights stretch across the windshield as I drive home, pulse syncing to the beat of my blinker.
When I walk into the penthouse, the sound of laughter greets me.Kenzie is on the couch with Mom, talking animatedly.Eli is at the big floor-to-ceiling window talking with Dad.
And Tessa, barefoot in my hoodie, hair pulled up, is working her way around the kitchen pulling out plates and cutlery.
The sight of her in my space waiting for me to come home feels bigger than the goal did.
She looks up when I step in.“You’re home,” she says softly.
I nod, throat tight.“Yeah.I’m home.”
I cross the room in three strides, pull her up into my arms, and kiss her like I’m trying to sear it into memory.
When we finally break apart, she leans her forehead against mine, smiling.“You okay?”
“Better now,” I admit.
I place my hand on the back of her neck and press another hard kiss to her lip, before wrapping myself around her and soaking in the moment.The sound of my family in the background feels like some kind of peace I didn’t know I was missing.
When was the last time they were all here?
Dad and Eli join us in the kitchen, Dad pulling me in for a hug, telling me I played a great game.Mom and Kenzie join us when the food arrives, my mom promising me she wanted to help Tessa in the kitchen, but she was banished to the couch.
The evening is perfect.
And I know exactly why.
Later, when everyone’s gone and the apartment is quiet, I carry her to bed.The lights are low, the city spilling in soft, gold, and blue through the windows.
I have this desperate need to be inside her, connected.
It’s not wild or desperate.It’s slow.Reverent.
We make love.
Every kiss is an apology for the things I haven’t told her yet.
