Page 69 of Paper Hearts & Plot Twists

Orison Books

Shock, wonder, amazement, and disbelief warred. Emily devoured the letter three times before she looked at the contract. A $25,000 sign-on bonus. This had to be a dream. There was no way this was real. It had to be a cruel joke. But the contract looked legit. And this was the agency Emily had always dreamed of publishing with. And the agent name on the email checked out. It was a valid email. Somehow. Someway. This was real.

The phone buzzed as another text message came in. Emily clicked the notification, wondering if Joel was checking in again. But it wasn’t Joel. Miles’s name lit up the screen with the new message.

M: Did you get some good news today???

That amazing, wonderful, sneaky man. Emily waited until the bus pulled into her stop, a good five-minute walk from her home, and called Miles’s number. The wait felt like a millennium.

The phone rang once before the husky voice she’d learned to adore answered, “Hello, my Emily.”

The dam that had been welling up in her chest burst, and tears streamed down her face. “Miles what did you do? Why did you do that?”

“Darling, you deserve to have someone in your corner and I want to be that someone if you’ll have me.”

“I don’t know what to say,” she said, hiccupping through the tears as she continued the slow walk home. “I’ve missed you so much, and it felt like all this was slipping through the cracks. That we were slipping through the cracks. Now you did this, and you still want me. I don’t know what to say.”

“Darling, look up.”

“What?” Emily lifted her head toward home. Leaning against the door, smirking, stood Miles, as beautiful as she remembered him from the conference. Emily stared for one long moment before dropping the phone from her ear. She stumbled over her feet and started a sprint toward the house. She knocked her foot against the step, tripped, and fell toward Miles who caught her around the waist and pulled her body flush against his.

“I’ve missed you, my darling,” he said before pressing his lips to hers in a soft touch that sent shivers down their spines. It was like time stopped, and the only thing that mattered was the warmth of their touch. His lips danced against hers in a whisper of the longing he’d felt.

Miles deepened the kiss. Emily moaned into the touch, pressing herself farther into him. Her fingers traced the contours of his jaw, while his hands slid up her back and found hold in the locks of her curly hair. The world fell away, leaving only their shared breaths and beating hearts.

“I love you, Emily. I should’ve said it before. I’ve felt it from the moment I held you the first time. I love your humor, your wit, your drive. I love you, and I need you.”

“Oh, Miles, I love you so much,” she replied, too choked to say more.

He grinned at her. “This is where the two of us belong, in each other’s arms.”

“What happens now?” Emily whispered, a breath away from Miles’s lips.

“Whatever we want, as long as we’re together. I thought we could make long distance work, at least for a time, but I was wrong. I can’t not see you. Either I move here, or you move to me, or we start looking for something new, but whatever it is, I want us to be together.”

“You really mean this?”

“I’ve never meant anything more in my life.”

“What if I want to travel the world?” Emily asked.

“Then I’ll travel the world with you,” he promised. He pressed his lips to hers.

“What if I want to go on a book tour?”

“Then we go on a joint book tour wherever your heart desires.”

“Would you still stay if—“ Miles cut Emily off with a kiss.

“You’re just trying to test me, but know there is nothing you can ask for that I won’t give you. You and I, we’re a team.“ Miles ended his statement with another kiss when she opened her mouth to ask another question.

“Whatever you do, we do. As long as you’ll have me, I’ll be here.”

Epilogue

One Year Later

Emily walked hand in hand with Miles down the busy Portland streets. Traffic was flowing heavily, and the sidewalks were full of people taking advantage of the rare warmth and sunshine. Emily loved the sunshine too, but she and Miles were actually heading to another book signing. Miles’s newest book released that day, and they were expected to make an appearance at Powell’s bookstore. He really was incredible.

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