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“Yeah,” he exhaled. “I was.”
Rory thought about it for a moment. Zoe. Helen.
“Where is Zoe going to school?” she asked.
“NYU.”
Which made perfect sense. Helen said no to her scholarship at Northeastern and decided on Barnard instead. To be in the same city as Zoe. The thought of the two of them having to hide for so long broke her heart. “Why did they hide it? Were they embarrassed?”
“Zoe was on edge about her father’s reelection campaign,” he explained. “Walker’s dad was a big financial backer for Garner’s campaign, and one night this summer when they all had dinner, Garner made a joke about the two of them dating.”
“Wow,” Rory breathed.
“Walker took that as a sign later that night to finally make a move. But he had no idea that Zoe and Helen had gotten together earlier in the summer and were seeing each other in secret.”
She very much wished she could punch Walker in the throat. “Why didn’t she tell her parents?”
“With so much media attention on them, she was afraid. She wanted to wait out the year until things with the election died down, then tell her parents before going to college.”
“And Walker?”
“That’s where I came in,” he answered. “Playing fake boyfriend meant she was safe from Walker, and she would have someone to help her so she could see Helen.”
“Like a date to the movies,” she said, remembering how awkward Zoe was when Rory and Melanie ran into them at Haverport Cinemas months ago, how adamant she was about seeing a movie in a different theater. Memories of the past year began flashing before her eyes, moments that she missed. “Those candy grams on Valentine’s Day…”
“All Helen,” Tyler responded. He pulled her in tighter. “Are you mad?”
She scowled. “Why would I be mad?”
“I deceived everyone, I made some pretty dumb decisions just so I could play football,” he said. “I kept secrets from you for months, and I feel awful about it, Ry. I’m so sorry.”
“Okay, that’s true, maybe you did deceive a few people,” she admitted. “But you also sacrificed a lot to help a friend when she needed it. I’m weirdly proud of you for it.”
He didn’t say anything, his eyes on her lips.
“I don’t know what kind of person this makes me for saying this, but I know you,” she started. “I know how much playing football has meant to you, even on that first day when you moved to Haverport and sat next to me on the swings and told me all about your dream of playing in the NFL. My stomach was in knots every day you didn’t receive a call, knowing that your dream felt so close…yet so far. If I had the same kind of offer from Zoe and her dad, I would have done the same thing. In a heartbeat.”
“But I hurt you,” he croaked. “Ry, no dream is ever worth losing you. You are my dream. You are the thing I desire most in this world. At the State game, after you left and I searched the stands for you, I realized football means absolutely nothing to me if you aren’t there cheering me on. I don’t want any of it unless you’re by my side.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks. He brushed them away with his thumb.
“I love you, Rory Michaels. I have loved you since the first moment I met you ten years ago. When I ran into the backyard and saw you sitting alone on that swing, I vowed that I would never let you be alone again.
“When you told me you wanted to move on and be just friends, I thought I missed my shot for good. I thought I needed to forget my dumb vow, to move on and forget you. But I don’t think that will ever be possible for me.”
He cupped her face in his hands. “Because I will always choose you, Ry. I always have, and I always will. You have never been second place, not once. You are the girl for me.”
Then he finally pressed his lips to hers. She smiled into his kiss, her arms finding his shoulders as she pulled him closer, her hands tracing down his neck and inside the collar of his button-down. His hands grazed her face and neck until they snaked around her waist as he leaned forward, tipping her back as he opened his mouth to hers. She slid her tongue against his as he lifted her up, pressing her up against the front door, her legs wrapped around his waist.
He broke apart from her briefly. “I love you,” he whispered, kissing up her neck and nibbling her ear. “I will always love you.”
“I love you too,” she said, sweet relief washing over her at finally being able to admit those words to him.
He grinned, a hum in his throat. “Say it again.”
“I love you.”
He kissed her cheek, down the other side of her neck. “Again,” he breathed.
