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I stare up at him. His eyes are a shade of blue I want to fall into, even though I know I’ll drown. Say you love me, Nolan. Please.
“What’s wrong?” he asks as he tries to decipher my expression.
Smiling as hard as I can, I rise onto my tiptoes and brush my lips over his. “Nothing.”
He tenderly sweeps my wild hair from my face. “I know that you’re leaving soon and you’re probably not coming back to Starlight Falls—”
“Don’t say that.”
“Let’s be realistic, Inez. The whole wide world is available to you. And you should take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way.”
Holding each other, we stand in place while the line continues to move. By this point, people are blatantly cutting around us to order their drinks. I allow Nolan to move me aside to a spot where we won’t get run over by the crowd.
I feel tears sprouting in my eyes. “It’s going to hurt when I have to leave,” I whisper.
Nolan nods slightly, looking rueful and sad.
“Do you regret us?” I ask, holding my breath. “Do you regret that we started this thing if it has to end so soon?”
His warm, calloused hand cups my jaw. “Never,” he says firmly. Full of conviction. “You’ve made the biggest impact on my life, Machado. “You’ve made me a better man. A better father. A better business owner. A better me. You’ve shifted my priorities in all the very best ways.” He lowers his face, touching his forehead to mine.
And he says the words I’ve been wanting—needing—to hear for so long.
“I…I love you.”
Around me, the world swirls. My feet feel like they’ve lifted off the ground. And tears spill from my eyes. “You love…?”
Nolan just smiles, his thumbs brushing my tears away. “Yes, I love you,” he whispers again. “I love you, Inez Carolina Machado.”
My heart releases a sigh of relief. The biggest, widest, most out-of-control smile breaks free across my lips. “I love you, too, Nolan Theodore Brighton.” I reach up, stroking my fingertips over his scruffy cheek. “I love you so very much.”
This moment is so special. A moment I want to remember for the rest of my life. I wish I could seal it inside a Ziplock bag and keep it forever.
His grin matches mine. “God—I love you, Inez.” He squeezes me tighter. His face grows somber. “And I’m not saying this to change your mind about what you have to do. I just want you to know that while you’re out there taking over the world, there’s someone on the other side of the country who will be cheering you on with every step that you take.”
“Thank you…” I breathe out.
“Promise me something?”
“Anything…” I say quietly.
“Any time you’re doubting yourself, just think of me.” He cradles both of my cheeks in his hands. “Just think of me and how much I believe in you, and how much I love you. Can you promise me that?”
“Promise.” I nod. Then I bury my face against his chalk and watercolor stained shirt. “Oh, Nolan. God, you…you are everything…everything I could ever want…”
At this point, I can’t find words, all I can do is cry. Because I don’t want to go. Well, I do want to go. But…but I don’t want to leave him and Stella behind.
I know our time is running out. But that doesn’t change the way I feel. It doesn’t change how deeply I love him. And his daughter.
Nolan holds me for a while and when my tears start soaking through his shirt, he gently holds me at arm’s length. “Jeez—what kind of boyfriend am I? Making my girl cry on our date?” He gently wipes at my tears.
I emit a watery laugh. “These are happy tears. The happiest tears, I promise. I love you.”
“I love you, baby. You ready to go home? I wanna make love to you.”
My stomach tingles at the suggestion. I nod a little too eagerly. “I want that.” I’m already aching at the mere mention of Nolan inside me and on top of me and wrapped around me. I love him so much.
He drapes an arm around my shoulders, guiding me over to where we’re parked.
