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Jasper: You should listen more often.
I chuckle to myself because how many times have I heard that from teachers, coaches, trainers, friends, and Dane.
Opening the door to my hotel room, I find it transformed. The living room furniture has been rearranged and pushed against the walls, with a large fuzzy blanket spread out in the center. Two wine glasses, throw pillows, and a picnic basket. But it’s the soft white lights strung around the room that makes my heart race.
Dane appears in the bedroom door, wearing dress pants and a button-up shirt, tailored perfectly for his chest and arms. He’s the most handsome guy on the planet.
“You’re late.” he says as he stalks toward me, surrounding me with arms. “How was yoga?” he asks as he places a suctioning kiss below my ear.
“I need to shower.”
“We’ll shower together after.”
The gentle assault continues on my neck. “You’re all dressed up. Let me rinse off and put on something easier for you to get into.” I wink, teasing him.
He follows me into the bathroom, undressing me, kissing me. “I love the saltiness on your skin. It’s a damn aphrodisiac. Hurry, I have plans.”
“I see that. I’ll only be a minute.”
I scrub myself with the lemon-scented soap and wash my hair quickly. After I’ve towel dried my hair and body, I slip on a short t-shirt dress. When I walk into the living area, he has electric candles surrounding the edges of the blanket.
“You look beautiful.”
“My hair will frizz when it dries.”
“I know, and I love it.” He grabs my hand and pulls me into his chest. “I meant it when I said, you don’t need to change for anybody. Not for me. Not for anyone.”
I’m positive he would say Jasper, but he stopped. “Thank you. You’ve always been my rock. I hope I’ve been yours too.”
“Rock isn’t the right word. More like you’ve always been the center of my universe.” He gives me a shadow of a kiss and sits on the light-tan fuzzy cover and brings me down in his lap.
“You sure know how to make a girl feel special. Have you done anything romantic for girls before me?” I ask, sounding insecure. I’m not. I just want to know the one part of him he never gave to me. It was our silent code, not talking about specifics with our hookups.
A brief smile rolls up his cheeks. “Not unless you call Wendy’s and a movie romantic.”
“Have you ever taken a girl on a romantic walk?”
“No. Lettie, the only walks with a girl who has meant anything to me have been with you. When we were seven, looking for frogs. When we were nine, walking to karate practice after school. When we were twelve, trick or treating as Shrek and Fiona. When we were sixteen at the homecoming bonfire, we snuck away and sat on the back of my truck, looking at the stars. When we were twenty, and you met me in the basketball tunnel, after we beat North Carolina. You slung your arms around my waist, and we walked out to the bus together. Most weren’t romantic, but some of those times I thought maybe you felt the same way about me that I felt about you.”
How did I get so lucky to have this man in my life?
“Or when we hiked up Lookout Mountain after graduation. I thought we may kiss that day. I guess it was the old ‘right guy, wrong time.’”
“Not anymore,” he says, pressing his lips against my shoulder.
“Finally, the right guy, at the right time.” I reposition myself where I’m facing him.
His hands roam over my face, and his eyes reflect the lights around us. The energy between us gets heavy, but it doesn’t feel sexual. It’s more of an excited rumbling in my belly—the anticipation of giving each other the only thing left. It’s the right time for me to tell him I love him, really love him.
Breaking the trance, his knuckles tuck under my chin, drawing me closer. With a tender touch, his lips kiss mine several times. His large hands palm my face. “I love you, Lettie. I’m in love with you.”
Tears swell behind my lids, and my lip quivers. “You’re in love with me? Because I’ve been in love with you forever. I tried to deny the feeling. Push it down… deep, but I worried about ruining the best relationship I’ll ever have. Dane, I cannot lose you. It’s not an option.”
“Say it.”
“Say what?”
“That you love me.”
