Cohen lets go of the trophy. It drops into the soft snow.
He turns to me. He’s sweaty, breathless, hair plastered to his forehead—and there’s a light in his eyes that erases every doubt I’ve ever had.
He cups my face in his hands, with a joyful desperation that steals my breath.
“I love you, Sloane,” he says.
His voice is clear. Strong. It cuts through the fireworks, the cheering—everything. He doesn’t care who hears. He doesn’t care that Joe is getting back to his feet in the shadows.
I freeze. My heart stops—and then starts racing twice as fast.
“What?”
“I love you,” he repeats, looking straight into my soul. “I love you like crazy. You’re my favorite disaster. You’re my victory. And I don’t give a damn about the cameras or the fear. I wanted to tell you calmly—but I couldn’t hold it in for another second.”
Tears rush to my eyes, hot and fast.
All of Joe’s lies. All my insecurities—they burn up and disappear.
“I love you too, you idiot,” I sob, laughing as I wrap my arms around his neck. “I love you so much it hurts.”
Cohen smiles, and that smile lights up the night more than the fireworks.
“Then kiss me, Captain.”
I do.
And it’s not a kiss for the show.
It’s a kiss that tastes like kept promises.
He lifts me off the ground, pulling me against him like he wants to fuse me into his body, and I cling to him, knowing there’s nowhere else in the world I’d rather be.
I hear camera flashes. I hear our friends cheering.
But it’s all just noise.
The only real thing is the steady beat of Cohen’s heart against mine.
And I know—this is the greatest victory I could have ever hoped for.
Epilogue
Sloane
Pink and gold fireworks explode across the black sky above Elm Hollow, turning the night into an endless rain of sparks.
The crowd is completely unhinged—signs waving, people screaming, camera flashes popping like lightning.
At the center of the stage, beneath a storm of heart-shaped confetti, there’s the most beautiful chaos I’ve ever seen.
Aunt Tina stands on a crystal podium, dressed in a fire-engine-red gown so covered in Swarovski crystals it’s probably visible from space. She grips the microphone like a scepter, and her amplified voice makes the mountains tremble.
“AND HERE WE ARE! THE MOMENT OF TRUTH!” Tina shouts as triumphant music swells.
The broadcast cuts quickly to the podium.
In third place: Silas and Daisy.
