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Even in my state of disbelief, I was still very much aware of how I felt about him and the way he made me feel.
Though I couldn’t say he’d gotten his fill of me, Griffin eventually tore his mouth from mine. Our chests were both heaving as our eyes roamed over the features of one another’s faces.
“How long?” I asked.
“What?”
“How long do I have you here for?”
“I was kind of thinking forever,” he answered.
My eyes widened, my brows now halfway between the spot they normally sat and my hairline. “Forever?” I repeated.
His chin dipped slightly as his lips twitched. “Forever.”
Blinking my eyes rapidly, convinced I was dreaming and would wake up at any minute, I confessed, “I don’t understand. What do you mean?”
“I’m done.”
“Done? Done with what?”
Griffin inhaled deeply and let out that breath before he answered, “Surfing.”
“You… I… how… what?”
Offering the sweetest smile, he loosened his hold around my waist, but only so his hand could drift down toward my ass to give me a squeeze. Once he’d done that, he said, “I can’t do it any longer. The first four months without you were unbelievably difficult. I thought your trip to Hawaii would be enough to tide me over until it was time to come back here, but I was wrong. These last two months were unbearable. I’m not doing it anymore. I don’t want to live each day without being able to see you.”
I was in shock.
Shock.
“Griffin,” I breathed, unsure of what to say.
“Having to live three days without being able to see your beautiful face or kiss your gorgeous mouth is too much. I’m not prepared to put either one of us through another three- or four-month stretch again. I’m done with the long-distance relationship, Indy. I want to be where you are.”
Tears filled my eyes.
This man.
This unbelievably beautiful man wanted to be where I was.
I wanted to lean in to all the wonderful things it made me feel, but there was one small part of me that felt guilty.
“You’re just giving up surfing for me?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, sugar. I’m retiring from surfing for me. Because I want a life with you, and I can’t possibly build that life when we’re more than three thousand miles apart. I’ll still surf. We can still take trips to Hawaii and other places around the world together. But I want my life to be here, in Blue Spruce, with you.”
A single tear rolled down my cheek.
More than a year ago, I’d lost it all. I had almost nothing left. Exactly one year ago, I was sleeping on my best friend’s couch, feeling nothing but devastation and despair.
Then I met Griffin, and he changed my whole life without expecting me to give up anything that was important to me.
“What did I ever do to deserve you?”
Griffin let out a soft laugh. “I think I should be asking you that question.”
“I still can’t believe you’re here.”
