Page 110 of Time to Bounce

“You just changed someone’s life,” Garrett pointed out. “You should be really proud.”

That night, when I went to bed, I thought about their words.

I should be really proud.

And I had my dad to thank for my perseverance.

If I could only find my sister…

Later that night, as I lay in bed in Gable’s arms, I couldn’t help but think about how happy I was.

“Do you ever think you shouldn’t be happy?” I asked into the dark.

Gable had just come to bed after getting a shower.

His damp hair was against my skin as he lay with his head resting on my chest.

I was running my fingers through the damp locks and idly wondering if I deserved to be happy when it was possible that Mary Beth was out there struggling to live.

Was she happy?

Was she okay?

Did she suffer?

Was she even alive?

All of those questions raced through me all day, every day.

And now, with my heart protected by Gable, I wondered if I should be allowed to be happy. If, by being happy, I was somehow betraying my sister who couldn’t be.

His large palm came up, starting at my hip and ending at my rib cage. When he got to my lower ribs, he squeezed.

“Baby,” he said quietly into the dark. “Everyone deserves to be happy. I think at this point, your sister wouldn’t want you beating yourself up over being at peace yourself. Would she?”

“No,” I admitted. “She would be so mad at me for being like this. I just feel so guilty.”

“You’ll find her,” he whispered. “One day, you’ll find her.”

Tears once again pricked my eyes.

I was so freakin’ tired of crying.

He moved when my breath hitched, his body coming up to cover mine.

I widened my legs when his hips came into contact with my pubic bone, allowing them to fall between mine.

His hands came up to frame my face and he said, “Athena Grace Murphy, you deserve to be happy. You deserve to be loved. You deserve more than me, but you’ll never get the chance to find anyone better, because I’ll never let you go.”

My heart started to pound. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he said before pressing his lips to mine. “You’re my good girl forever.”

“Forever?” I breathed against his lips.

He wound both arms around my body and pulled me in tight, burying his face in my neck for a few seconds before murmuring, “One day, I’ll ask you to marry me. And when I do, you’re going to say yes, because you love me. Don’t overthink it. Don’t wonder what if. Be selfish for once and choose you. Choose me.”

A fresh wave of tears rolled over me.

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