Dylan held her tighter. “Hi, baby.”
And then he kissed her again—right there in the middle of baggage claim, with her legs around him and her shoes dangling and the world spinning a little too fast.
He kissed her like it had been years. Like he hadn’t just seen her face on FaceTime last night or heard her sleepy voice that morning. Like she was oxygen and he’d been drowning since the moment he boarded that plane.
Ali’s legs tightened around his waist, her lips still parted, breath shallow against his cheek.
They might’ve stayed like that forever—wrapped up in each other, floating above the marble floors of the Savannah airport—if not for the soft but firm sound of someone clearing their throat.
Dylan blinked and turned his head slightly.
A security guard stood a few feet away, hands politely folded in front of him, a mildly guilty look on his face like he hated to ruin the moment.
“Afternoon, sir,” the guard said gently. “Ma’am. Sorry to interrupt, but…if you could just, uh, move things along? We’re still in a public area.”
Dylan felt Ali’s body jolt with a tiny laugh against his chest.
He nodded quickly, adjusting his grip on her and lowering her back to the ground—carefully, mindful of those skyscraper heels.
“Right,” Dylan said, clearing his throat and giving the guy an apologetic smile. “Sorry about that.”
“No trouble,” the guard replied with a barely-there grin. “Just… maybe save the leg-wrapping for the parking lot.”
Ali buried her face in Dylan’s chest, clearly mortified. He just laughed, tugging her in close with one arm while grabbing his duffle with the other.
“Come on, trouble,” he whispered into her hair. “Let’s get you outta here before I forget there are laws.”
Dylan merged onto I-16 with one hand on the wheel and the other resting casually on Ali’s thigh, his thumb brushing over the hem of her dress. She hadn’t stopped talking since they pulled out of the airport parking deck, and he wasn’t complaining. He’d missed her voice. The way it sped up when she was excited. The way she waved her hands around—even when buckled in—to reallyemphasizea point.
“…and then Ashley said it wasn’t that deep, but Abigail nearly launched her Kindle across the room because apparentlyit wasthat deep, and now we all have to reread the chapter with fresh eyes,” Ali said, gesturing wildly. “Anyway, I think we’re picking a new book next week, but we’re split between a dark academia murder thing or something spicy with pirates, which feels like emotional whiplash but also kind of on brand for us?”
Dylan smiled, keeping his eyes on the road but soaking up every word. “Spicy pirates, huh?”
“I mean, it’s probably just pirate-adjacent,” she said with a shrug. “Like, seafaring rogues with a trauma kink and a moral compass buried somewhere under the tattoos.”
He huffed a laugh. “You sound into it.”
“Look, I’m not saying I have a type…” She shot him a sidelong glance and smirked. “But if you got a gold earring and a ship, I wouldn’t hate it.”
“I’ll make a few calls. I bet Captain Rip could hook me up” he teased, giving her thigh a squeeze.
She giggled and leaned her head back against the seat, her curls catching the sunlight streaming through the windshield. “God, I missed you.”
He glanced over at her, heart squeezing in his chest. “Missed you more.”
She reached out and toyed with the sleeve of his t-shirt. “Also, Abigail and Jason completely cleared my schedule today and told me to take the whole day off. I was just going to do a half day, but they bullied me out the door and told me to go get a blowout. Then Ab threatened me with emotional violence if I showed up at work today.”
“She’s solid,” Dylan said.
“Sheis. So I was thinking…” Ali lit up again, turning in her seat. “We should take her a six-pack of Diet Cokes as a thank you. She’s still holding a grudge over Kellan hiding hers in the garage that time, so I feel like it’ll hit. Grab a Starbies for Jason.”
“Done,” Dylan said easily. “Want to write her name on each can in Sharpie like an offering?”
Ali laughed, reaching over to squeeze his arm. “I love you.”
“I know,” he said with a grin, kissing the back of her hand. “You told me.”
They stepped inside, the door clicking shut behind them with a soft thud.
