“Hi.” She tried to smile through her nervousness and failed. He didn’t look at all happy to see her.
“You left.” His jaw tightened around the words, and he dropped his arms and bunched his fingers into fists. “I told you I loved you and you ran away.”
Beth stepped closer to him, determined to face this as she’d learned to face everything else in the last several months. Head-on, with an eye on her happiness. “I needed to get some things straightened out back home. And yeah, I was running away, you scared me. This—” she gestured to the house and the family behind him, “—this scared me. I needed some space to work things out for myself.”
“And?”
“And things are better now. I’m better now.” It hadn’t been easy. She’d spent a lot of time talking to Victoria Lewis, learning how to deal with her past and discovering what she wanted from her future.
His hands came up, gripped her shoulders. “I can’t watch you walk out of my life again, Beth. I won’t. Just stay. Your apartment, mine, I don’t care. Just say you’ll stay with me.” He cut himself off on a curse, as though ashamed of the plea. “I’ll come to Boston, if that’s what it takes.”
That he meant it humbled her more than she could bear. “You gave me what I needed,” she said, stroking her thumb across his cheek. “The time to find my own way, to figure out where I fit. In my family. With yours.” She glanced at the porch where they waited. “You gave me that. I’ll never be able to express how much that means to me.”
He covered her hand with his own. “I flew to Boston twice, didn’t make it out of the airport either time,” he admitted, bringing her fingertips to his lips. “My patience was wearing thin. I wouldn’t have made it to the holidays without coming after you. I’m all in, Beth. Say you’ll stay. It’s the last time I’ll ask.”
“I can’t stay indefinitely.” Beth smiled when his eyes narrowed and grip tightened. “I’m starting my master’s in architecture in Portland next week.”
He pulled her to him so fiercely the air rushed out of her lungs. His mouth slid over hers and stole what breath she had left. Finally, when Lucy began to cheer, he pulled back.
“Finally,” he murmured against her lips.
He pulled her under his arm and coaxed her up the steps.
“I love you,” she whispered against his neck as they followed the rest of the family into the house.
He paused in the doorway of his parents’ home, his fingers linked with hers. “Say it again, Beth.” He touched his forehead to hers, the warmth of his breath a caress on her face. “I need to hear you say it again.”
“I love you.” She watched his eyes dance in pleasure as she repeated it. “I love you.”
“And you’ll marry me?”
The answer bubbled up, warm and easy. “And I’ll marry you.”
“And it didn’t even take a Taser,” Lucy shouted from the living room.
“That was Chase!” he shot back, tangling his fingers the hair at her nape. “I’ll never live that down, will I?”
“Not as long as I’m around,” Beth answered, laughter coursing through her.
“So…fifty or sixty years?”
“At least,” she confirmed.
“I think I can live with that,” he said, tilting her chin. “Welcome home, Beth.”
She was still smiling when his lips covered hers.
About the Author
Amanda was born and raised in Texas—and due to an unfortunate three-year stint in Michigan—doesn’t plan to ever live anyplace where flip-flops and sweatshirts don’t constitute winter attire. Often audacious and adventurous, she tends to find herself in a slew of dangerous (and hilarious!) predicaments—law school and fighting raccoons in Dumpsters—and thankfully has many friends ready to lend aid (while they laugh).
When not lawyering, writing or thinking about going to the gym, Amanda is often caught sampling local cupcake offerings and planning to someday co-open an evil bakery and sell dastardly desserts. She currently lives in Dallas, Texas, with one regular-size cat and one jumbo-size cat, and can be seen writing in public places frequented by hot guys (strictly for research purposes, of course!) with her friends and fellow writers Cupcake-Killer and Alter-Ego (names omitted to protect the not-so-innocent).
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ISBN: 978-1-4268-9143-4
Copyright © 2011 by Amanda E. Alvarez
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All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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Amanda E. Alvarez, Hunting Human
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