Luke brushed a strand of hair from her face, his touch gentle, reverent.

"I've dreamed of this every night," he confessed, voice low and husky. His hand slid down her arm, intertwining our fingers before pulling me closer.

I smiled, pressing a soft kiss to his collarbone, tasting the salt of his skin.

The tenderness wrapped around us like silk, but beneath it simmered the raw need that had built over a decade—stolen touches, lingering hugs, the ache of what could have been.

I shifted, rolling on top of him, my skin brushing his chest as I straddled his hips.

Luke's hands settled on my waist, thumbs stroking my sides with feather-light caresses.

"Maddie" he breathed, leaning up to capture my lips in a slow, exploratory kiss. Our tongues danced lazily, savoring the flavor of each other.

Once the kiss came to an end I felt his breath heavy, but also tired in an comforting way, as if he had finally accomplished something.

I smiled at that though and got comfortable enough to rest my head on top of his chest, something I claimed as my new favorite pillow.

We stood there for awhile taking all of those early moments in, all the hat happened in the sudden minutes. All that, that changed us and our relationship.

I started to think what could possibly be happening in his mind, what was he thinking, if it was good, if it wasn't or maybe if it was a mistake. I closed my eyes are the mere thought of that then I heard his voice in almost like a whisper.

"Madison." he called, when he said my full name I know that he was about to say something serious that or he was mad. I took my head out of his chest and I looked up softly trying to catch his eyes and waiting for him to continue.

His eyes were different.

Not guarded.
Not distant.
Not trying to calculate the next move or the right words or the safest version of himself.

Just... open.

Terrifyingly open.

"Madison," he said again, softer this time, like he was grounding himself in the sound of my name before stepping off something irreversible.

I didn't interrupt.

Didn't joke.

Didn't deflect.

For once—just once—I let the silence sit exactly as it was.

Heavy. Honest. Real.

His hands tightened slightly on my waist, like he needed to make sure I was still there.

"I've spent years," he started, voice low, steady but carrying something underneath it—something raw, "trying to convince myself that what I felt wasn't... real. Or that it would pass. Or that it was just—timing, or proximity, or whatever excuse I could find to make it smaller than it actually was."

My chest tightened.

He let out a quiet breath, almost a laugh—but there was no humor in it.

"It never did."

His gaze didn't leave mine.

Not for a second.

"I tried moving on. I tried being logical about it. Tried to build something that made sense." A faint shake of his head. "But none of it—none of it—was you."

Something in me shifted.

Not violently.

Not suddenly.

Just... clicked.

Like a piece that had always been there finally finding where it belonged.

"I don't want anything else," he continued, and now there was no hesitation left in his voice. No second-guessing. No holding back. "I don't want easier. I don't want simpler. I don't want something that fits into a plan or looks right on paper."

His thumb brushed my side again, slower this time, grounding.

"I want you."

The words didn't rush.

They landed.

Clear. Certain. Final.

"I've always wanted you."

My breath caught.

And he stepped closer—not much, just enough to erase whatever space still existed between us.

"I'm not stepping back again," he said quietly. "I'm not pretending this is something it's not. I'm not letting another ten years go by because I was too afraid or too stupid to say it."

His eyes softened then—but the certainty stayed.

"I love you."

The world didn't stop.

There was no dramatic shift, no sound cutting out, no cinematic moment.

And yet—

Everything felt different.

Like something had been named that had always existed, and now there was no way to ignore it.

No way to run from it.

No way to pretend it wasn't there.

My lips parted slightly, but no words came out.

Because what do you say...
when the thing you've been avoiding your entire life finally stands in front of you, undeniable?

He didn't rush me.

Didn't push.

Just watched me—steady, patient, like he'd wait as long as it took this time.

And somehow—

That made it harder.

My heart was racing, thoughts colliding, every memory, every moment, every almost crashing together into something overwhelming.

And yet, beneath all of it—

There was clarity.

Terrifying clarity.

My fingers curled slightly into his shirt again as I nodded—small at first, then stronger, like I needed to convince myself as much as him.

"I..." My voice faltered, breath uneven. I swallowed, trying again. "I don't know when it happened."

Honesty.

Finally.

"But you were always there," I whispered. "Even when I tried to... pretend you weren't."

His expression shifted—softer, like something in him eased just hearing that.

I shook my head slightly, almost laughing at myself, at the mess of it all.

"At some point, it stopped being just you," I admitted. "It became... everything."

His grip on me tightened just a fraction.

And I looked at him fully now.

No walls.

No deflection.

No running.

"I want you too."

The words felt different leaving my mouth.

Heavier.

Real.

"I don't know how this works," I added, a breath of honesty breaking through. "I don't know how we fix ten years of... whatever this is."

A small pause.

"But I know I don't want to walk away from it again."

His forehead rested lightly against mine, a quiet exhale leaving him—relief, maybe. Or something close to it.

And then, softer—like a promise more than anything else—

"I want you forever," he said. "For real, Madison Miller."

My heart stuttered.

"You're all I want."

This time—

When we kissed—

It wasn't desperate.

It wasn't searching.

It wasn't trying to figure anything out.

It was certain. Soft and passionate. In a form of a promise.

The second kiss didn't rush.

It didn't burn the same way the first one had.

It settled.

Like something that had finally found where it belonged.

His lips moved against mine slower this time, no urgency to prove anything, no need to chase or catch up—just... being. Feeling. Letting it exist.

My hands slid from his shirt to rest more naturally against him, like they'd always known the place, like they'd just been waiting for permission to stay there.

And this time—

I didn't overthink it.

Didn't question it.

Didn't try to analyze what it meant or where it would go or what it would break.

For once... I just let it be.

When we pulled back, it wasn't because something interrupted us.

It was because we needed air.

Because we were smiling.

Actually smiling.

I let out a soft, breathless laugh, shaking my head slightly as I looked at him.

"This is insane," I whispered.

He huffed out a quiet laugh too, his forehead still close to mine.

"Yeah," he said. "A little."

"A little?" I repeated, raising an eyebrow. "We just rewrote ten years in, what—five minutes?"

"Six," he corrected automatically.

I blinked.

Then narrowed my eyes.

"You're unbelievable."

"And you love it," he shot back, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.

I rolled my eyes—but I was smiling.

And he noticed.

Of course he did.

There was a pause then.

A softer one.

Not heavy like before.

Not tense.

Just... new.

Different.

"What now?" I asked quietly.

Not joking this time.

Not teasing.

A real question.

Because this—

Whatever this was—

Wasn't small.

Wasn't casual.

It couldn't just go back to normal.

He didn't answer immediately.

For once.

Luke Parker—the guy who always had a plan, always knew the next step—just looked at me like he was... figuring it out as he went.

And somehow, that felt right.

"We don't run," he said finally.

Simple.

Clear.

Firm.

I held his gaze.

"No running," I repeated softly.

"No pretending," he added.

"No pretending," I agreed.

A small pause.

Then—

"No more 'I hate you,'" he said, a hint of a smile returning.

I tilted my head.

"...I might need that one sometimes."

He huffed a laugh. "Of course you do."

"And you love it," I threw back.

He didn't deny it this time.

Instead, his expression softened again, something quieter settling in his eyes.

"I meant what I said," he added, more serious now. "About not stepping back."

"I know," I said.

And I did.

That was the scary part.

I believed him.

Another silence.

But this one wasn't uncomfortable.

It felt like standing at the edge of something new—something unknown, sure, but not something to fear.

Just something to... step into.

From somewhere down the hall, faint voices echoed—laughter, movement, the distant sound of life continuing like nothing monumental had just shifted.

Reality.

The wedding.

Everything waiting outside this room.

I exhaled slowly.

"You should probably go back to your room though," I said biting my lip.

He made a face, frowning like I had personally offended him, then his eyes felt onto my lips as I tried to prevent myself from smirking

"Yeah I should be there in a minute" he said

"Good, you really should." I nodded

"Yeah totally" he fired back with an amused smiled reaching me for another kiss and trailing it to my neck making me giggle.

"You should be going now."

"You know very damn well I won't leave this room tonight." he whispered against my neck making my body arch and a chill run trough my whole spine.

My breath caught.

Of course he wouldn't.

Of course he'd say it like that—low, certain, like it wasn't even a question.

I tilted my head slightly, trying to keep some kind of composure, even if my pulse was completely betraying me.

"You're unbelievable," I murmured, though there was no real bite to it.

"Yeah," he said softly against my skin, not moving away, "you've mentioned that."

His lips brushed my neck again—slower this time, not rushed, not desperate like before, but intentional. Like he had all the time in the world now.

And that—

That somehow felt even more dangerous.

My fingers found his shirt again, gripping lightly as I let out a quiet laugh, the sound softer now, less defensive.

"You're really not leaving, are you?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

He pulled back just enough to look at me, his forehead almost touching mine again.

"No."

No hesitation.

No doubt.

Just that same steady certainty that had been undoing me all night.

I swallowed, trying to ignore the way my heart reacted to something so simple.

"Okay," I said quietly.

And this time—

I didn't fight it.

His expression shifted slightly at that—something softer, something warmer—and then he kissed me again.

Not urgent.

Not proving anything.

Just... close.

Familiar in a way that made no sense and perfect sense at the same time.

We stumbled a little as we moved—half laughing, half not paying attention—until the back of my legs hit the edge of the bed.

I barely had time to react before I sat down, pulling him with me without even realizing I was doing it.

He huffed a quiet laugh against my lips.

"Careful," he murmured.

"You were the one distracting me," I shot back, though it came out softer than intended.

"Sure," he said, like he didn't believe me for a second.

But he didn't move away.

If anything, he leaned closer.

We didn't rush.

That was the difference now.

No more stolen seconds.

No more almosts.

Just time—stretching in a way that felt unfamiliar and right.

My hand slid up to the back of his neck, fingers threading lightly through his hair as I rested my forehead against his.

For a moment, we just... stayed like that.

Breathing.

Existing.

Letting it sink in.

"Ten years," I whispered, almost to myself.

He nodded slightly, his nose brushing mine.

"Yeah."

"Idiots," I added.

He smiled.

"Definitely."

A quiet laugh escaped me, and I leaned into him again, not because I had to—but because I wanted to.

Eventually, the energy shifted.

Not gone—just softer.

Quieter.

Like the storm had passed and left something calmer behind.

We ended up lying back without really deciding to—him pulling me gently with him, my head settling against his chest again, like it had earlier, except now everything felt... different.

Closer.

His arm wrapped around me instinctively, hand resting at my side, thumb absentmindedly tracing small patterns.

I listened to his heartbeat.

Steady.

Real.

There.

"You're not allowed to disappear again," I murmured, eyes half-closed.

His hand stilled for a second before tightening slightly around me.

"I won't," he said.

A pause.

Then softer—

"Not this time."

I nodded faintly against him.

Sleep came slowly.

Not because it was hard—

But because neither of us really wanted to let go of the moment.

Every now and then, we'd shift slightly, brushing against each other, sharing quiet, almost sleepy smiles, like we were both still making sure it was real.

And eventually—

Somewhere between quiet laughter, soft touches, and the steady rhythm of his breathing—

I fell asleep tangled in him.

Not overthinking.

Not running.

Just... there.

Finally.