“Oh, Tim.” I gave a quick squeeze to his waist and swallowed around a lump in my throat, choked at how sad that must have made him feel. “That’s heartbreaking. I’m so sorry.”
He nodded, blinking rapidly. “That flash was it for me. I lost it. I swam the next length of the pool beside her, crying, really bawling like I haven’t done since Dad died. She’s leaving us in increments, which is hard to take, but it was the fear on her face that was so terrible. That moment, she was in such pain, and I would have done anything to take it away from her.”
“I know.” I rubbed his arm.
He shuddered out a breath. “Instead of constantly running around and trying to hide what’s going on with her, I want to slow down and spend as much time as I can with her and actually enjoy it.”
My eyes blurry with tears, I took his hands.
“Now you can,” I said. “We both can.”
He held me close, and all felt so right with my world.
I was home…because I was in this man’s arms.
Epilogue
Tabitha
Six months later
“Hey, you.” Timjoined me, running off the rugby field, pouring with sweat after a big game. Funnily enough, he was the last one, which wasn’t like him. He stood over the top of me, hands on hips, shifting his weight from foot to foot, slanting his face this way and that.
“Hello.” I blushed. I’d never stopped feeling that new-girlfriend shyness when he came off the field, even though the last six months had been wild. Sometimes it felt like we’d lived a couple of lifetimes together.
Tim’s grand gesture had attracted much media and public attention, sparking debates on how women were treated onscreen and in online comment sections, followed by ruefulcommentary that it took a man’s gesture, albeit a lovely one, to bring attention to the unfairness. Criticism mounted over the production company’s slant on the show and opinions they’d allowed to be posted. The show was reedited to reflect our bickering but without portraying me as the villain, and the snarky opinions were deleted.
And we’d won the prize money!
I’d like to think it was because the house had turned out so beautifully, but I suspected it was because the controversy boosted viewing numbers.
In the end, it was Mum and Dad who emerged as stars of the show—which Simon said he’d always predicted—and they’d gone straight into filming a series focused solely on the “Amor Inn,” as Dad had dubbed it in his Latin. The production company handled all the admin for the inn, so the cleaning and cooking were always done, despite Mum and Dad’s constant muck-ups, which turned out to be essential for high ratings. And I was getting paid back for the financial investment, which was a relief. In my little corner of the world, my new show had a small but loyal following.
Tim, however, had vowed never to step in front of a camera again. His mother had settled in at the local memory care home, where the staff were wonderful, and Tim and I saw her often. Unfortunately, we had to stop bringing her to big games like this, as crowds now confused and upset her.
Tim tugged on my coat pocket. “I was watching you during the game.”
I poked his chest. “You must not have been concentrating very hard on the game, then.”
He gave a little smile. “What did you think?”
Inside, I melted a little because he’d never lost that desire to impress me.
“I must have missed it. I was too busy studying the architecture of—” I looked around “—rugby stands.”
His lips quirked.
“Yes, that didn’t really come off,” I admitted.
I moved closer toward him and brushed my knuckles against his. His hair was plastered to his head, and his damp shorts and shirt clung to his body. It was so cold, the steam from his skin and his breath were visible in the air. I loved seeing him like this, and it was all I could do not to climb him, wrap my arms and legs around him, and smother his face with kisses.
He lifted the bottom of his rugby shirt and wiped his eyes, giving me a glimpse of his deeply cut abs. I also loved that. He gave a sly wink—he knew.
“Coming for a drink at the clubrooms?” Amy asked as she and Fitzy walked by. I noticed she quickly handed Tim something.
Then Amy and Fitzy stopped and turned toward us. The movement made me glance at them, and they were both beaming, with phones raised. Behind them, huge images of Tim and me flashed up on the scoreboard.
Tim dropped to one knee.
