“And I hate making you cry.”
“These are happy tears,” I say in a choked breath. “I promise.”
With his hand under my chin, he guides my gaze to his.
“So I didn’t take too long to come around?”
“A little,” I say, and we both laugh. “But I’m still here.”
I can’t wait anymore. I crash my lips to his, then wrap my arms around him and hold him tight.
“Yes!” Grey shouts from his bedroom window, causing us to break the kiss and erupt into laughter again. “Hi, Greer!”
“Hi, Grey,” I beam up at him.
He waves for a moment and then disappears. I take advantage of that moment to kiss Simon again.
“I missed you,” I whisper between kisses.
“I love you,” he replies.
“I love you too.”
Suddenly, Grey is crashing out the back door, followed by Willa and Calla.
“Where did they come from?” Simon asks with a laugh.
“Oh my god, that was the cutest thing!” Calla gushes. She and Willa are both talking a mile a minute, and Grey joins them, quickly telling which parts were his idea and how he helped Simon.
“You’re sure you’re ready for this?” Simon asks, nodding to the trio on the patio.
“Yes,” I say with confidence.
He pulls me in for another kiss as soon as Grey pulls the girls inside so he can show them his list of other ideas. We stay like this, slowly swaying to the music until the sun sets and the lights are shining over us.
Most people say that when it’s real love, it should come easy and be simple. I don’t think those people are necessarily wrong, but no two love stories are the same. Some people meet the right person at the right time, and some take a little more fight and patience than others. In the end, if it’s real to you, you just have to make the right choice. For me, waiting for Simon was more than right.
EPILOGUE
TOBIAS
My entire life revolves around love.
Romance.
Intimacy.
Relationships.
Trust.
There’s so much that goes into that one four letter word. More than me, a romance writer, will ever know. To every single person in the world, love is not defined the same. To be loved varies from person to person and over the last few years, I’ve watched it form five different times. Five different amazing and beautiful times.
I sit back in my chair, watching my friends in front of me.
The guys and I had been having a writer’s session tonight. A much-needed couple of hours for all of us to get some work done. Yet, one by one, girlfriends, fiancés, wives, and kids have arrived to bring those friends home.
Me? I’ll hang out here for another hour or so to check more off my to-do list.
