Page 128 of All Roads Lead to You

His gentle touch, the hot water, the steam, and the lavender quickly knocked me out after my long day. My eyes grew heavy until my mind was met with darkness.

“Logan?”

I sat up and blinked my burning eyes several times, trying to get my bearings.

“You fell asleep,” he said.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Let’s dry off and get some sleep. The water’s getting cold.”

After we dried off, we climbed onto the soft bed with thick blankets, and I drifted off to sleep again with my forever person wrapped in my arms. Fuck, how I missed holding him while we slept.

Two days and lots of sex later, Nick and I were walking side by side, periodically touching our hands as we walked up the steep slope to see the spectacular view of the Cliffs of Moher.

The day was pretty cold, windy, and rainy, but it didn’t take away the beauty of the place, full of lush green grass and steep cliffs dropping into the dark, choppy ocean water.

We followed a trail winding around the area before Nick stopped me when no one was close by. We had another stunning view of the cliffs, and I was in awe, taking several pictures of him with the gorgeous background. Before I could walk on, Nick grabbed my arm.

“Wait, Logan.”

“What?”

Nick pulled out a black box from his jacket and opened it, looking around to make sure we were still alone, but I’d tuned out the world, focusing on the simple gold band. My heart beat so hard against my chest that I could hear it.

“Nick?”

“I-I know we can’t get married. Not yet, anyway. But we will. I know it. Things are getting better and better each year. It’s going to happen. This ring is a promise that I’ll always be by your side, no matter what. That I’ll always love you, through thick and thin, or if our fucking government ships you off again.”

I slipped off my gloves, and Nick lifted the ring and put it on my right ring finger instead of my left. “When we get married, it will go on your left hand.”

While we were in Dublin or Edinburgh, I’d find a ring for him, too.

“God, Nick. This is amazing.” I took his face in my cold hands and looked around us again. Some people were hiking our way, but they were far enough away, so I kissed him, but I didn’t linger. “I love you so much. How’d I get so fucking lucky?”

“We’re both lucky.”

I put my gloves back on because it was cold as hell, and we started to walk back. “I told our parents and Hannah what the plan was,” Nick said. “When we get back, they not only want to throw you a welcome-back party but also have a party that celebrates our bond.”

“I like that. I can’t wait to see them.”

Hannah was fifteen now and quite the handful. One day, right before I left for Sudan, Nick and I had been in the woods near our house, kissing. She’d followed us and caught us. Boy, that had been a crazy day. She was grossed out at first, but we all eventually had to sit down with her and explain our story. Eventually, she’d come to accept us, just as our parents had. We still never shared that we were stepbrothers to anyone, and we were okay with that. It was no one else’s business.

We faced the stone wall, looking out over the water and cliffs. I took his hand, tucking it away in front of us so no one could see.

“There are going to be many roads that open up to us, Nick. I just know it. And all those roads will always lead back to you.”

The End