Page 113 of Not Until I Found You

I shrug. “Yeah. I wrote it back when I thought I was ready to date again after Lily. I thought if I could find someone who checked every box, everything would work out the next time I trusted someone with my heart.”

A smile tugs at her lips, and her eyes drift back to the page, but before she can say another word, I reach over and take the paper from her hands.

“Zane—”

Her eyes widen as I tear it in half. Then again, and again, until the little scraps flutter onto the coffee table.

“Why did you do that?”

“Because I don’t need some list telling me what I want in a woman…” I proclaim, taking her hand, and my thumb brushes over her knuckles, “when all I want is you.”

She goes completely still. Her lips part on a small breath, and her eyes glisten as they search mine. Then, almost shyly, her fingers weave between mine, holding on like she never wants to let go.

“Even though I don’t fit all of it?”

I let out a laugh. “I don’t⁠—”

“No. Let me finish.” She shakes her head, so I settle back into the couch and let her continue. “When I first came to Covewood, my relationship with God was a mess. But now I’ve rededicated my life to Him. And I’m still growing, but I want to keep growing alongside you.”

A smile tugs at her lips as she squeezes my hand.

“And okay, maybe I don’t have my entire future figured out yet. But I do know I want to finish college, and afterward, I want to put down roots here.” She glances away shyly.

I smile with satisfaction. “Really?”

She nods. “Really.”

“And marriage?” The question comes out quieter than I intended.

The smile lingering on her lips fades. Her fingers tense against mine, and she holds my gaze with a steadiness that wasn’t there a moment ago.

“I’ve seen what happens when people stop choosing each other. When I get married, I want it to be forever.”

The thought of marriage has never been casual to me. It’s a promise before God. A daily choice to keep showing up, even when it’s hard. That’s what I’ve wanted all along. It’s never been about finding the perfect woman, and I don’t expect a relationship to never face hardship. I’ve always wanted someone who’d be willing to keep choosing us, even when life gets messy.

“And Covewood?” I ask as she scoots closer until our knees touch. “I want this town, and I want the guy who comes with it.”

I lean in, intending to keep it brief, but the moment my lips find hers, passion overrides that plan entirely. My hand finds her jaw before I’ve made the decision to reach for her, tilting her face up toward mine, and what started as a quick kiss turns slow and deliberate the way it always does with her. When I finally pull back, I keep my hand where it is, thumb tracing the line of her cheek, and hold her gaze for a beat longer than necessary. Long enough that she knows I heard every word and let it settle inside my heart.

“I just wish my mom would come around to the idea of me living in Covewood.”

Her gaze slides to mine, and she looks tired, like the weight she’s been carrying around has suddenly become too heavy to bear. I want to wrap her in a blanket and tug her into my lap. So that’s exactly what I do. I reach over and pull her to me.

She giggles. “Zane, what are you⁠—”

I interrupt her with a quick kiss. I grab the blanket off the back of my couch and wrap it around her, encouraging her to place her head onto my chest. We lie like that for a long time, me stroking her back, her taking in deep breaths.

“She’ll come around,” I finally say, brushing my thumb over her hair.

“I hope so.”

I have this frantic desire buzzing under my skin to fix whatever is hurting her heart right now. Maxinne twists around until she’s tucked into my side, her cheek settling against my shoulder. Tension leaves her body in slow increments as I press a kiss into the crown of her head and breathe her in.

She sighs, and the sound travels straight through me, all the way down to my toes. This is the kind of moment people spend their whole lives chasing. I grin, resting my cheek against her hair, my fingers tracing idle, lazy patterns along her arm. Sven lets out a dramatic huff from his bed, clearly offended that we’ve chosen each other over him.

I’m about to say something else when a beam of light cuts across the far wall. I recognize it as headlights and frown, wondering who in the world would be here this late at night. Sven’s ears perk up before he pushes up from the floor. A low bark builds in his chest, becoming sharp and alert now as he moves toward the front door.

Maxinne shifts against me. “What is it?”