For a moment, I just stared at him.
Then—
I exhaled sharply and nodded.
He brought his lips to mine.
The kiss lingered — slow, careful, less like hunger and more like an apology wrapped in quiet promise.
“Elena, I love you so fucking much,” he whispered against my lips.
His thumb traced lightly along my side, grounding me.
“And one day... I want to hear you say it back. I know I don’t deserve it yet. I know it’ll take time—for you to trust me again... to love me again. I’ll wait. However long it takes.”
He pulled back reluctantly.
Then, with deliberate care, he shifted us both until we were sitting upright in the wide backseat.
His movements were never rushed, never careless.
He guided me against his chest, drawing me in until I was curled into him.
My head rested beneath his chin.
My legs draped across his lap.
I let myself melt into him.
The last remnants of tension in my body slowly eased as I listened to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath my ear.
He pressed a soft kiss to my hair, then another—slow, lingering, like a silent promise.
I tilted my face up, searching his expression, looking for something I wasn’t sure I was ready to find.
“Do you regret what you did to Violet?”
“I regret nothing when it comes to us. I’d do the same to anyone who dares stand between us,” he said quietly.
“Elena... we’ll grow old together. And I’ll make sure the only thing you ever know is happiness. Even if I have to burn the world to give it to you.”
I let out a faint, trembling breath.
A small smile—uncertain but real—curved my lips.
Slowly, I lifted my hand and reached up to him.
My fingers found the short, dark beard along his jaw.
Rough. Coarse.
I ran my fingers through it gently.
Tracing the line of his jaw.
Feeling the contrast between the rough texture and the smooth skin beneath.
He closed his eyes for a second.
