I kiss her again and again, unable to stop myself.
Her fingers slide up to the back of my neck, threading into my hair as she holds onto me while I turn us in the sand as the snow swirls around us.
“You really love me?” she asks breathlessly.
I lower her back onto the sand, but I don't let her go. My arms stay around her, keeping her tucked against me where she belongs. Her head tilts up so she can look at me, her green eyes searching my face as if she's still trying to convince herself this isn't some dream.
So beautiful. I can't even describe her beauty.
“Willow.”
My cold hands move up and down her back, a steady, soothing motion that makes her shiver beneath my touch.
“You walked into my life in a way I never imagined,” I tell her. “Nothing about us was planned. Hell, I didn't even know it was possible. But my soul recognised yours before I even figured it out, and once that happened, there was no going back for me.”
Emotion washes over her face, and a single tear slips free, tracing its way down her cheek. It isn’t one of her sad tears that rips my insides apart.
“Through every good day and every bad one, there's nothing in this world we won't face together.”
Resting my forehead against hers, breathing in her scent and relishing this moment, I can't believe she's mine. "I love you now, and I will love you after."
“I love you so much it actually hurts,” she chokes out.
Her confession breaks free, as if it's been trapped inside her for so long.
I cup her face, holding onto her with care, letting her take whatever strength she needs to say what's been sitting on her heart.
“I didn't have any control over falling in love with you. I tried to fight it. I told myself so many times it was wrong, that I couldn't possibly even like you.”
A weak laugh escapes her. Half disbelief, half surrender.
“You helped me fall in love with life again. You made it easier to breathe. To live.”
Her fingers curl against my chest.
“You're the breath of fresh air I didn't even realise I needed,” she whispers. “And for the first time in so long… I don't feel like something inside me is missing.”
She pauses, her voice thick with feeling.
“I’m whole again because of you.”
Willow reaches up and brushes a tear from my cheek.
I never cry. Only with her, it seems.
The gesture catches me off guard. I dip my head with a quiet huff of disbelief, shaking it slightly before pressing a kiss into the centre of her palm. The warmth of her skin lingers against my lips.
I’m going to love this woman forever.
“I’m scared about how Rivers is going to react.”
I hush her before she worries too much. I understand it, hell, it's always crossing my mind, but this weekend isn't about the world outside of us.
It's about her.
“We’ll deal with that when we get home, baby,” I murmur. “Right now, I just want this weekend with you. Celebrating you,” I pause, a crooked grin taking over. “Preferably naked.”
“Is that all you think about?”
