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“All jumbled in the head.” He smiles. “I look in your eyes and kind of get lost in them.” He sounds a bit sheepish now. “I know that does sound like a line, but I swear it’s the truth—”
“Just keep this to yourself, all right? Like you said, there’s lots of reasons to keep it quiet. But the most important one is that she asked.”
“So, this thing we’re doing,” Gigi starts. A chuckle slips out. “What?” she says defensively. “Nothing, I was just waiting for it. I called you baby. This was bound to happen.” “Waiting for what?” “For the what-are-we talk.
“Baring your soul, my ass. All I’m saying is, you can’t ‘do’ feelings or not do feelings. Sometimes feelings just sneak up on you.”
If she were the one, he wouldn’t think it. He would know it.
And if she were the one, he wouldn’t have messed around with somebody else.
“Just feel what you feel. It’s okay.”
“I’ve never met anyone I felt comfortable sharing all that with.” I peer into his bottomless blue eyes, always floored by how vivid they are. “I don’t feel like you judge me. About anything. Ever.” “I don’t.” “Do you feel like I judge you?” “Never,”
“Gisele,” he says. “Mmmm?” “Are we dating now?” A smile tickles my lips. I rise slightly on my elbow and gaze down at him. He’s biting his lip and it’s adorable. “Yeah. I think we are.”
I stick out the flower. “Here.” She sighs. “Oh God. I’m scared to ask, but…what international day is it?” “National Cotton Candy Day. Seemed like one you’d celebrate.”
“So? When you know, you know.” Her lips twitch as she examines my face. “Got it. We’re still fighting it. Don’t worry, Luke—we’ll save this for another time.” She laughs softly. “Give your head some time to catch up to your heart.”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be. But I want to try.” And I do. I mean that. I know I have my flaws. But I need to level up to be with this woman. She forces me to be better. I want to be better for her. I want to be her hero. Emotion clogs my throat.
“You should be prepared,” Owen eventually says, glancing over to grin at me. “For what?” “You’re gonna marry that girl.”
That hard exterior hides the kind of man I’m honored to be with. A man I trust enough to show every ounce of vulnerability to. A man who hears me when I gently point out a flaw and tries to alter his behavior. A man who makes me desperately happy even when I’m feeling sad.
But this is something else. This is agony. Deep, tortured sobs ripped from the depths of her soul. And I’m utterly helpless. All I can do is hold her as tight as I can while she shakes in my arms. “It’s okay, let it out,” I urge. I don’t know how long she cries for, but her voice is hoarse by the time she settles. Her eyes are swollen and red, and my heart breaks for her. I’m so goddamn in love with this woman. Seeing her cry makes me want to find the person who did this to her and slam his head through a wall. I inhale a deep breath, searching for the words to ease her pain.
“But why don’t I have that other quality he’s looking for? What the hell about me is lacking?” “Nothing about you is lacking. Ever. You’re perfect, exactly the way you are. Even with all your flaws. Like needing to be the best. And your taste in music.”
“Nobody likes failure, G. But I maintain that this isn’t failure. This is just one moment in time.” “A moment in time,” she echoes weakly. “Yes, and right now, in this moment, you’re down. But that’s okay because I’m here to lift you up.” “Always?” she whispers, peering at me with those big gray eyes. “Always. You fall, I pick you up. Always.”
don’t want anybody else. You know that, right?” Gigi blinks. “Where did that come from?” “I don’t know. I just need you to know I don’t want to be with anyone else. Ever.” A soft smile tugs on her lips. “Me too.” She reaches up to touch my face, rubbing the stubble on my jaw. “This is it, Luke. I think we both know that.” Yes, I think we do.
But there’s nothing I can do about it now, nothing to change the way I feel about his daughter and the way she feels about me. She’s mine and I’m hers, and he’ll have to deal with it eventually.
But my woman holds her own.
A fucking stampede wouldn’t be able to stop me from getting to Gigi. “Like hell I can’t,” I growl. And then I give him another firm shove, forcibly moving him out of my way. “That’s my wife out there.”
Ryder made it better that night. He makes it better every night. And day. And minute. We make each other better.
“We know exactly what we’re getting into. It’s not going to be perfect. We’re going to run into issues. Life’s going to hit us hard from all directions, all the time. But we’re choosing to do life together. We went into this with our eyes wide open.”
I’ve made my choice. He’s it.
just remember walking hand in hand down the Strip that first night in Vegas and thinking there’s nobody else I want to hold hands with for the rest of my life. And for some inexplicable reason, Gigi agreed.
“Then, better ask forgiveness than permission, right? Because I would’ve married her either way. I—”
“You really love her.” “Till the day I die,” I say simply.
“Christ, Ryder. You married my ex-girlfriend,” he says flatly. “No, I married my wife.”
“Sorry, but you know what I mean. The honeymoon phase will fade. We’ll get stuck in ruts and routines and probably want to kill each other half the time. But it doesn’t matter. He’s the one I’m choosing to do all of it with. Like you and Mom.”
But I can’t imagine any future with Gigi not being bright.
