Amelia was quiet for a moment. “I wasn’t prepared the first time.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s my fault.”
She nudged me with her elbow. “But this time . . . being alone is a privilege. Not a sacrifice. I’ve never had time to myself. Not like this.”
“Say the word and we’ll stay here forever.”
She laughed. “I do miss good coffee.”
“We can get an espresso maker.”
“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”
“There are very few things in life that can’t be solved.” I kissed her head. “And when it comes to you, there’s nothing I won’t do.”
Silence descended as the two of us sat and appreciated the view. It was one of our favorite hikes. Sometimes we’d go down to the river, whether it was through the cellar tunnel or walking above ground. But this . . . this spot was where I felt her most.
“Remember the first time we came out here?” I asked as I shifted so that she was sitting between my knees.
She nodded. “I told you about my parents. We kissed . . . a lot.”
“Did you know today’s our anniversary?”
Her brows furrowed. “No, it’s not. It’s May. Not September.”
I laced her fingers between mine. “This didn’t start when we moved out here in September, little fox. This started the night we ran from the Four Horsemen.”
“The night you kidnapped me,” she corrected.
“Semantics.”
“Crime,” she clipped.
“Proactively relocated,” I said mildly. “Besides, it’s not like we were strangers.”
“Nooo,” Amelia said dramatically. “You were just my friendly neighborhood stalker.”
I tipped my head back and laughed, my hair spilling down past my shoulders. Amelia had me grow it out again because she liked it. Honestly, so did I. The two of us had created a life where we chose who we were.
Amelia fell for me when I was at my least lovable.
That changed everything for me.
It was never about who she was told I was—a bouncer. A mob enforcer. A criminal. It was all about who she believed I was at my core. A protector. Someone gentle. Someone kind.
I would never take her love for granted, and I woke up each day determined to be the man she believed I was.
“I can’t believe it’s been a year since then,” Amelia said. “It feels like it’s been just a few days, but also a millennium.”
I knew exactly what she meant.
“It feels like I’ve known you my whole life. That when we finally met, we were just picking up where we left off.”
She leaned back against my chest. “Yeah.”
“A year since we came out here for the first time. Almost nine months since we came out here after everything ended.” I kissed her temple. “And you’re still with me.”
“There’s no place I’d rather be.”
