“A truth for a truth?” I suggested. He smiled at the familiar words. “Okay.” I took a deep breath and whispered, “I love you.” He went very still in my grip. I let go of him, clutching a fist to my pounding, exposed and vulnerable heart. “And you…” He caught my hand, brought it up to his lips, and answered before I even had an instant to doubt it. “Yes,” he whispered back, brushing a kiss across my knuckles, his eyes never leaving mine. “And there is the missing piece.”
