The Day He Came Back

by Penelope Ward

“Travel is overrated. The best places are those where you find peace.”

So tonight is a little bit of a risk. I’m technically putting your job in danger if somehow my mother finds out. Being here with you right now is really selfish and inconsiderate of me. But I can’t help wanting to be around you. And spending this time with you tonight only made it worse.” How could I be mad at that? “What other truths have you bent?” “I’m pretending I’m okay being your friend right now, when all I want to do is taste your lips.” I swallowed. He wasn’t the only one. I’d been staring at Gavin’s luscious mouth all night, wishing I could feel it on mine. “I think you’re incredibly beautiful,” he added, “in a way that makes my pulse race every single time I look at you. Everything about you is different in a good way. You’re genuine as fuck, and I love being around you.”

“Don’t look at me like that,” I said, though I loved the way he was looking at me. “Like what?” “Like you want to…eat me or something.” “I do. Very badly.”

“I hope that cleared up the fact that this was, in fact, a date. It was always a date. We’re dating.” He smiled mischievously.

“I’ve made no secret of the fact that I want more with you, Raven. But this right here? Just talking to you like this…someone I can relate to? Fuck, I’d rather have just this with you than nothing at all. I mean that.”

“I know we’ve been hanging out casually, but my feelings for you have only grown. I’m a fucking liar. I’ve been pretending to be okay with the whole friends thing. The truth is, I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I don’t know what to do.”

“I feel so much I can hardly breathe lately. It’s scaring the hell out of me because I know the right thing to do would be pretend it’s not happening. But I can’t, Raven. I don’t know how to stop this.”

“Remember how I said this was my favorite place?” “Yeah?” “Well, you’re my favorite person.”

“I just want to put this out there. You’re probably going to catch me staring at your body several times today, and I might have a perpetual hard-on. You look incredibly sexy.”

I’m afraid to break you. And I don’t ever want you to do anything you’ll regret. You mean more to me than my dick.” “That’s the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me,” I teased. He wasn’t laughing. “What I mean is...I care about you more than I want you. And that’s new for me. The last thing I ever want to do is hurt you.”

“Trust me, Raven. I want to come right now from just looking at you. There is absolutely nothing you can do or not do that would make getting to have you anything less than the best experience of my life. Take my word on that. There’s no wrong way to do this. Just be with me.” I took a deep breath. “I do want this.” “Then I need to make you really wet first.” My mouth curved into a smile. “I can live with that.”

Treat me the way you’d treat anyone.” “No way. You’re not just anyone, Raven. From the moment I met you, I knew that was the truth.”

“I’m sorry I went quiet. But I had to. The past several weeks have been some of the most difficult days of my life—not because I wasn’t sure of what I wanted, but because I knew I would have to hurt a good woman who loved me. I couldn’t tell you how I truly felt until I’d handled what I needed to with Paige. But Raven...once I found out the truth about why you left me, there was never any question what I wanted. I never stopped loving you, either. I only suppressed it. Even when I thought you’d chosen to break up with me, I couldn’t stop. I’ve looked for you in every woman I’ve ever met, trying to find that same connection, those emotions I felt when I was with you, but that was never possible, because there’s only one you.”

All these years, not a day went by when I didn’t think about you. But I never imagined I’d see the day you told me you felt the same way. We lost ten years, but I will spend every day of the rest of my life making it up to you.”

“Not long after we started dating, I told you that you’d always have me if you needed me. I meant it. Even back then, I knew there would never be another person who made me feel the way you do. In ten years, it never happened. I wasn’t meant to feel complete with anyone else. I was meant to be with you, Raven. I love you with all of my heart and soul, and I always have.”

“The moment we met, you knocked me on my ass. I knew there was something there. I could never bear to part with any piece of you, even this little sticker. And that marked the beginning of never really being able to let you go. You’re not just some girl. You’re the girl. And if I was with anyone else, it was only because I believed I couldn’t have you. I will give you as much time as you need. But I want you. Only you. Not tomorrow—right fucking now, Raven. I don’t need time. I need you back.”

“Our story is far from a fairytale. But everything happens for a reason, even if that seems impossible to understand. Since we met, we’ve spent more time apart than together, thanks to a very long detour. But the days with you remain the best days of my life. From now on, I want the days with you to outnumber all of the others. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He opened the small black box. “I love you so much. Will you marry me?”