Page 94 of Where the Darkness Goes

I release a breath, letting the truth sink in. I don’t need to think for long to know it doesn’t change anything for me. I can’t say I would’ve done anything differently if I’d been in his shoes. Knowing what Garrett was going through that night puts so much into perspective. I’ll never forget the strained look in his eyes—his mind clearly warring with itself—as he tried to maintain restraint, then the look of relief when he finally gave in. For better or worse, this man is mine. And I am his. No one has ever held me so completely as he does. “You didn’t take my choice away from me.” I stroke his face again. “There was never any choice.”

He squeezes his eyes shut with such palpable relief it kills me.

“I love you too, you know,” I whisper.

“No,” he says, the word carrying so much weight as his eyes go glassy. “I didn’t.” He leans forward and presses his lips to mine. His kiss isn’t everything I’m used to from him—it’s gentle and sweet and still utterly perfect. I’m realizing the lackluster kisses in my past were not about technique. They simply weren’t enough because they weren’t him. He’s a hard act to follow. “I love you.”

“Can you do me a favor?”

“Anything.” The response comes in an instant.

“Can you text Will and ask him to give Mom another message for me?”

He pulls his phone out. “Sure. What is it?”

“Could you ask him to tell her I’m staying?”

He starts to type the message but freezes when he realizes what I’ve said. “You’re staying?”

“Turns out we were no good at the whole long-distance thing.”

“Are you sure? I’ll move to you,” he blurts, his words rushed. “I know your mom and Will would love to have you here, but please don’t do this because of me. I will go wherever you go. Wherever your life is, I will be there. Whatever makes you happy.”

I lift his hand to my mouth and press a kiss to his palm. “Youmake me happy. You are my home and my safe place and my very best friend. You’re all I need, and I love you. This—you and me—wherever we are will always bemore than enough.”

I say those three words slowly, dragging them out to remind him of that night. Everything he told me I deserved is exactly what he’s given me. Despite all the heartache and the confusion, the years we spent apart and the things we still need to figure it out, we know what matters now.

Truth.

Love.

Happiness.

He kisses me again, this time with a bit more of the fire that I’m used to. He’s coming back to me. We always manage to find our way back. He bites my lip gently, and the butterflies in my stomach scatter.

“I hope you know you’re mine, Tessa Becker,” he whispers, and I know what he’ll say next. I close my eyes, thinking back on the moment that started it all as I hear the words I hope to hear every day for the rest of my life. “Because I sure as hell havealwaysbeen yours.”

I guess Pastor Charles made at least one good point. What’s in our veins does matter, and at this moment, I know without a doubt Garrett Campbell will forever be in mine.