Page 79 of Lift Me Up

I laugh, kissing his jaw softly, “I love you, Noah.”

“One more time.” He hums when I kiss his ear, nipping just slightly before pulling away to meet his gaze. His cheeks are a beautiful pink, and his eyes are shining bright with tears and something I can’t quite name.

“I. Love. You.”

When he kisses me, finally, he breathes new life into my body. He makes my heart race, my breath catches, time stops. There is nothing better than this moment.

"Fuck, we're such a mess," he mutters to himself when he pulls away, forehead still pressed to mine. I nod in agreement, laughing with him. I feel the tears on my cheeks that he kisses away before looking me in the eyes.

"So, what does this mean for us then?" He asks softly, sounding hopeful.

"Um..." I pause for dramatic effect before playfully responding. "Well, it means I like to kiss you,"

I kiss him again, and he hums happily.

He smiles. "I like that."

"It means, I want this to work for both of us." I give him a squeeze.

"I want that too."

"It means, I want to promise to do better, promise to talk more about everything going on⁠—"

"And to not let yourself get in your head," he cuts in.

"Yes. That."

He kisses my nose. "And to believe me when I tell you you're beautiful, because you are."

I huff. "Only on special occasions."

Noah laughs. "Great. And I'll try to be less perfect. I'll take up a bad habit. Would you prefer biting my nails or burping really loud or—I know. I'll get an earring, no—a whole face of piercings."

I can't contain the giggles that bubble out of my chest, releasing a sigh I didn't know I needed to let go of. "Maybe not a whole face full. But there are a few places I could think of that would make things... interesting."

He lets out a yelp of surprise as I gently pinch a sensitive nip. He laughs and groans when he rests his head on my shoulder, hugging me. "You'll have to talk me into that one. But don't worry, I love you, and we've got nothing but time." Seven words that break me apart and turn me into something brand new.

I love you, and we've got nothing but time.

Here’s what I know about love PT. 2

1. It is the best feeling in the world to be wholeheartedly loved and to be in love.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

GEORGIE

It's strange to say the words out loud, to hear the words play out in my mind in his voice, over and over on a loop. He loves me. Noah actually loves me. It's just as weird how quickly I start to genuinely believe that those words might be true.

It's one thing to hear the words, to feel them with every breath he takes, like each inhale prepares and each exhale inks the words into my skin in invisible ink that only I can see. It's a completely different experience to see the meaning of those words so clearly on display now, seeing every ounce of effort he'd put in, past and present, showing me he cares and he really does have feelings for me. He doesn't resent me; he's not trying to fix me. He simply wants whatever life I can give to him, so long as I am a part of it. Blinded by my own insecurities before, I took for granted what was always there in front of me. Now, I intend to make every moment with this miracle of a man count.

We spend the day together at work, the shop is closed for the day so we can work on a bulk yarn order, and Abi has Noah learning the systems as her final task before she officially retires and leaves the store to our own devices. Of course, she'll still pop in from time to time, but we've been given creative liberty to update anything we want. I have many ideas, and I have to get a notebook to write them all down as I start dying a fresh batch of 'rainbow sprinkles' in-house yarn. Noah watches on in amusement as he clicks around on the computer, taking the courses very ‘seriously’ as he smiles over the top of the laptop screen.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I say shyly over my shoulder.

"I just have a very, very good view."

My body straightens, and I feel the flush in my cheeks. The cool October weather has called for leggings and cute shirts and sweaters. Today, it's a pair of black leggings, a three-quarter length sleeve in a soft mauve pink, with crisscross straps to make for a very appealing chest piece. I have to bend over to swirl the dye into the tubs, and in doing so, my hair falls into my face and obscures my view of Noah unless I am truly trying to see his perfect face.