His gaze shifted.
Tess stood alone near the waterline, the hem of her dress brushing her knees as the breeze moved through it, her hair catching the glow of the fire behind her. She looked calm. Steady. Like her old self again.
And somehow, that hit him harder than anything else.
Three months of therapy had gone a long way toward helping all three of them—her, Brian, and Andy—move forward after her kidnapping, even if some nights still brought it rushing back. Brian had held her through the worst of it, and over time, the nightmares had grown fewer and farther between.
After tossing the bottle in a nearby trash can, he crossed the sand toward her, his feet sinking slightly with each step as the night air carried salt and the scent of smoke and charred wood.
“Saw you head this way.” Not wanting to startle her, he let the words out before wrapping his armsaround her waist, closing the distance so her back was against his chest.
She didn’t turn her head. “It’s quieter.”
“Yeah.”
He stayed where he was, his hold loose but steady, as they both watched the waves roll in. She seemed more relaxed than she’d been in a while, and he liked to think his family had something to do with that. Bonnie and Dan checked in often. Grace had pulled her into the wedding plans. Even Moriah had found her on social media, their conversations shifting from small talk to books, Megan growing up too fast, and everything in between.
Returning to work after a three-week hiatus had helped Tess—so had moving back home and Andy starting his senior year. It kept them focused on what lay ahead rather than the past.
“I got an email this morning,” she said.
Keeping one arm around her waist, he moved to her side. “What kind of email?”
She turned toward him and tipped her head back just enough to meet his gaze. Her eyes danced with a mix of excitement and disbelief. “One that said I got the grant.”
Pride hit him in the chest. “Really? You got it?”
She nodded, a small laugh slipping out. “Yeah.”
He didn’t think. Didn’t overanalyze. His hands came up to frame her face as he kissed her. She made asoft sound against his mouth, her fingers curling into his shirt as she leaned into him.
When he pulled back, her eyes were brighter.
“I’m so proud of you, baby,” he said.
“Thank you.” Her hands stayed on him, and he didn’t miss the way her breath caught before she spoke again. “It means I’ll be in med school this time next year. Classes. Clinicals. Everything. A lot.”
“I know what it means.”
He’d thought about it—long hours, schedules that didn’t line up, and the kind of strain that could wear on anyone—but none of that made him hesitate.
Not when it came to her.
“I’m in it for the long haul.” He chuckled. “Dr.Bingham.”
She grinned. “It’ll be a few years before I earn that title, but I like how it sounds already.”
Neither of them spoke for a moment as they stared at each other, but then she took a deep breath and exhaled in a rush. “Brian... I want you to move in with me. Well, with us. That is, if you want to.”
For a second, everything narrowed to just her. The words didn’t feel sudden. Not really. More like something that had been there all along, waiting for one of them to say it first. He’d been easing into her life day by day, until it stopped feeling temporary.
He didn’t want temporary. Not anymore.
“Andy’s okay with it,” she added quickly. “I talkedto him already. And you’re there most nights anyway, so?—”
He cut her off with another kiss, longer this time, and when he pulled back, her breath was uneven, her eyes searching his. His hand slid to the back of her neck, holding her there for a second longer as everything settled into place, as the last of the hesitation he’d carried for years finally burned off and left nothing but clarity behind.
“Yeah,” he said. “I’m in.”
