“I brought you something,” he said after a beat.
“You shouldn’t. I don’t need gifts.”
“I know. It’s nothing big.”
“Unusual for you,” I teased with a grin.
He reached into the inner pocket of the jacket draped over me and pulled out a small box. It wasn’t jewelry—he knew me and my pace.
Inside was a four-inch Wonder Woman figure. All our hours of running jokes—Superman, Wonder Woman, pick your cape—landed right there in his smile.
“It’s perfect,” I said, melting inside. “We’ll put her on the shelf right under your poster.”
Moving in together wasn’t a question anymore. It was the air I was already breathing. I wanted all his clothes in my closet, all his action figures on my shelf, all of him inourhome.
“Thought you’d like her. She saves the world. Or runs an inn.”
I laughed, melting even more. “So no tattoo?”
“Someday. But you should know I don’t like needles. For you, though ...”
“How come I didn’t know that about you?” I scrunched my nose, trying to remember if he’d ever told me.
“There’s still stuff we need to learn about each other.”
“I want to know everything.”
“Me too.”
“Let’s see what else,” I said, and jumped into his arms.
He scooped me up. “Deal,” he said, gently falling with me onto the sand. We kissed, and he rolled on top of me. My dress hitched up.
With his free hand, Sebastian cupped my face, his thumb stroking my cheekbone, his eyes glimmering, looking into mine.
“I love you,” I said again, because it never felt redundant.
“And I love you.” His hand slid down my body, his weight warm and solid over me.
I grinned against his lips. “For the record? I don’t like sand in my ass.”
Sebastian laughed, then rose up, pulling me with him. “I know a clean bed not too far,” he said.
The inn lights guided us as we turned back up the path together.
I studied the angles of his profile, every line so achingly familiar and yet still capable of undoing me.
All these years, I’d been both fearless and terrified at the same time—living in defense mode.
And when my defenses cracked, I pushed harder to restore them, convinced that I could. And when that failed, I was frozen, unsure which way was safe anymore.
But Sebastian had always made me feel safe. With him, I could finally unclench my grip, let go of the rope, and leap into the unknown.
I wanted him more than I wanted safety.
The choir of doom in my head finally shut the fuck up when I stopped fighting and let myself surrender to love. I knew the fears still lived in me, but I had Sebastian to face them with.
He carried me the last stretch, kicking the door shut behind us as we stumbled into the cottage. The Wonder Woman figure ended up on the console in the entry, abandoned in our rush. Clothes trailed behind us, laughter breaking between kisses until the bedroom swallowed us.
