At first I’m stiff, awkward, hyperaware of my height and my limbs and the fact that everyone can see me. Then the beat grabs hold. Marco joins in, laughing at me. Carol dances beside him, beautiful and carefree. Jody is here, too, dragging Dan into movement despite his protests.
Somehow, I’m laughing. It’s real and unforced. And then—across the room, through the blur of bodies and lights—I meet Rafe’s eyes.
He’s not dancing. He’s watching. His drink in his hand. His posture relaxed. His gaze locked on me like the rest of the room doesn’t exist. Like I’m the only thing worth looking at.
Everything else melts away.
The music dulls. The crowd becomes background.
It’s just him.
The man who has seen me at my worst. The man who has held my face in his hands in borrowed rooms and promised me forever anyway. The man who’s standing in the middle of his own chaotic world, watching me like I’m the prize.
My pulse pounds against my ribs.
Rafe smiles, slow and private, like he’s proud of me for being here. For trying. For letting him love me loudly tonight, even if we still have to live quietly tomorrow.
He takes a drink after that—automatic, like punctuation. Not because he needs it. Not because he’s sloppy. Just because he’s learned the trick of staying a little buoyant when the room gets too loud.
Eli leans close and whispers, “Maybe you want to stare in a different direction?”
“No one!” I shout back, too quick, and not making a lick of sense.
He squints at me, snorts. “Subtle.”
Marco laughs like he knows exactly what this is, but he doesn’t say anything. He just claps me on the shoulder and keeps dancing.
The song changes again, something slower this time, and bodies shift into looser movement. Couples gravitate toward each other.
I watch Miles with his date, their foreheads close as they talk. Drew’s hand rests at the waist of his date, protective and gentle. Dan sways with Jody like she’s the only person in the room.
And me, I dance and laugh, with a husband across the room I can’t touch. It should hurt. It does, a little. But tonight, it mostly feels like possibility.
Because when the party ends, when the last guest leaves, when the DJ packs up and the house goes quiet, Rafe and I will climb the stairs together. We’ll disappear into his bedroom, and for two uninterrupted nights, we will belong only to each other.
Rafe catches my eye again and mouths something I can’t hear, but I can read his lips easily.“Tomorrow is ours.”
My heart kicks hard in my chest. I nod once, smiling so wide it aches.
The song fades into another, the DJ riding the mood like he knows exactly what he’s doing. People cheer at the transition, and the dance floor surges again, bodies pressing closer, laughter rising.
Eli spins away from me like he’s possessed, yelling something unintelligible and immediately getting a chorus of approval from anyone within range. Marco laughs so hard he doubles over, his arm around Carol’s waist while she shakes her head like she’s used to this brand of chaos.
I’m in the middle of it, sweat starting to bead at my temples, and fuck, this feels good. I don’t feel like I’m acting. I’m just… here. Present. In my body. In the moment.
Then a hand catches my elbow.
I turn, expecting Eli again, but it’s Dan—taller than me by a fraction, broad shoulders filling his shirt like he was built for stability. He looks slightly out of place on the dance floor, which is exactly why I trust him.
“Marshall,” he says, leaning in so I can hear him. “We’re going to head out.”
“Okay. Let me say goodbye properly,” I say, letting him steer me off the floor.
We step into the edge of the living room where the music softens just enough to make conversation possible. Jody appears beside him like she’s been summoned, eyes bright.
“Happy birthday,” she says warmly.
“Thanks,” I reply, meaning it.
