Suddenly Bruno bolts into a run. She hasn’t even entered the park yet, but he must have caught her scent from far away. Five minutes later, she walks in—Bruno at her side, her little pup perched on his back. Elowen is giggling, patting his head, and he revels in it, enjoying having her attention all to himself.
I rise slowly. She still hasn’t looked my way. But for me, everything stops the moment she appears.
Finally, her gaze finds me—and the world, what’s left of it, falls away.
Her smile brightens. Her steps quicken. My heart fills with a warmth so fierce it melts the decades of ice covering it.
She reaches me and throws her arms around me. I gather her close, breathing in roses. In this moment, I want nothingmore. She is the answer to prayers I never dared to speak. The life I never imagined I’d get back. All the suffering, the pain, the longing—it ends here. With her.
I finally loosen my hold, only when I’ve drunk my fill of her warmth.
She doesn’t pull away completely. Instead, she mouths,I have my phone, with an exaggerated pout, then steps back.
“How was your day?” She asks cheerfully.
“Good. Yours?”
“Mine too.” She tucks her hands into the pockets of her thick lavender jacket.
“It’s freezing here. I’m not used to this.” She shivers and sneezes. “Today feels particularly bitter.”
I frown. “You’ll get sick out here.”
She waves it off. “I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. And you don’t even have a hat.”
“So what do you suggest, then?” She tilts her head.
“Go home.” The bitter words force their way past my clenched teeth.
Her health matters more than the selfish desire to keep her close for a few hours.
“Why don’t you take me to your place instead? We could watch a movie. Have dinner.”
My brows lift. So she’s been acting this whole time. She deserves praise for it.
“Let me ask my dad?”
She pulls out her phone and makes a call.
“Dad? I’m going to Jonathan’s for dinner.”
She listens for a long minute.
“Okay. Okay, I will. Love you. Bye.”
She pockets the phone. “He said yes. But I have a nine o’clock curfew.”
I smile.
She pokes my cheek, grinning. “You’re a beautiful man, Jonathan.”
I chuckle, take her hand, and lead us toward the exit.
“Wait—Bruno’s leash.”
She picks it up from the ground, kisses his head, and we start walking again. I take her hand once more.
