Page 77 of End Game

“You’ve been . . . you’ve shared my music?” he repeated. “You’ve been recording me?”

“Yes. And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but I knew you would try and stop me. I knew you would let your fear outweigh the possibilities, and I wanted to prove to you that you have nothing to be scared of.”

For a long moment, he did nothing but stare at me, and with every passing second I could feel a growing panic slither through my body. Eventually, he sighed before asking, “Can I see?”

“Oh . . . of course,” I said, pulling my phone out of my sweatshirt pocket. I opened the app and pulled up his account before handing him the phone. Leo took it and curled himself over the screen, looking at the long feed of videos and eagerly scrolling through the comments that people left under each one. I watched as the corner of his mouth tugged up at something he read before he started furiously scrolling again.

It was like magic, watching him realize the impact his music had on so many people.

He looked back up at me, his eyes tender. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

I smiled wide. “Leo, this isn’t even the best part.”

His eyes grew wide. “It’s not?”

I shook my head, taking the phone back from him so I could open the message that had come in a couple days ago—the one that changed the whole game. And then I gave the phone back to him and let him read it. “Holy shit,” he whispered as he set the phone down and covered his eyes with his hands.

“It’s not a guarantee,” I said carefully, unsure of how else to put it, “but it’s an open door, Leo. It’s a chance. And I would bet all of Larkspur that it’s only the first of many.”

He scooted himself across the cushion to get closer to me and I was transfixed as I watched his face transform into something beautiful, something eager and hopeful. My bright and shining Leo—my supernova. His hands etched a path across my cheek. “You wicked woman. You did all this for me?”

Relief flooded in my chest as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Yes,” I breathed. “Of course I did, Leo. You deserve this—you deserve to be seen for how incredible you are.”

He snaked his arms around me and held me like he never wanted to let go. “I don’t even know what to say,” he murmured into my hair. “How you manage to be exactly what I’ve always needed . . . I can’t even begin to comprehend it. Thank you for fighting for me. You are my endgame, Mara. You’re all I see, the only one who really sees me.”

I choked on my next breath as a sob ripped through me. I had no idea love could feel like this. There was no longer a clear boundary indicating where Leo ended and I began—we now swirled together into the mists as one. One heart shared between two tired and broken souls who’d finally found the light again.

This kind of love was one I knew I’d never recover from, but in ways so different from what I’d experienced before. I would no longer be able to live my life without the imprint of Leo on my skin, like the sun’s kiss on my face.

The traces he left were warm and lively, and the effects of his love would carry me through the rest of my life. He taught me how to love my imperfections, just as I helped him do the same. We honored each other’s vulnerabilities and gave each other a safe space to land, no matter how rough the journey.

And for that, I was forever thankful. Just as I was forever his.

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