Page 77 of Always on My Mind

She had changed into jeans and a button up blouse, but her makeup was gone. No doubt she had taken it off before training in the afternoon.

“Best tell me what you’re doing here,” Tessa said.

“I wanted to apologize for what happened at the shoot,” Jamie told her. “Tessa, I am so, so sorry I jumped in that way. You have never betrayed me, even when we were broken up. I have absolutely no reason not to trust you. I gave in to a knee-jerk reaction, and it was totally unfair to you. I promise I’ll do better going forward.”

The kettle clicked off, and Tessa poured the boiling water over the fresh tea bag waiting in her cup. She watched the steam for a moment before facing Jamie again.

“I’m sorry too,” she said. “I should be more understanding.”

“No,” Jamie said with a shake of her head. “My trauma is not an excuse for treating you poorly. If I do something that hurts your feelings, I want you to tell me.”

“You weren’t treating me poorly, it’s just. . . a result of your upbringing.”

“Exactly. A reason. Not an excuse. You have every right to hold me accountable.”

“And you, me,” Tessa said. “If I need to give you more time or more space, you let me know.”

“I don’t want that right now,” Jamie said. “Right now, I want to give you your Valentine’s Day gift.”

“We don’t have to—”

“I want to.”

Jamie reached into her tote bag and pulled out a small, rectangular gift box, wrapped in blue paper with purple and pink ribbon.

Tessa arched an eyebrow, but her smile betrayed how pleased she was. “The bisexual colors?”

“Of course,” Jamie said, grinning back.

It was a thoughtful touch, Tessa had to give her that. She pulled the ribbons loose and unwrapped the paper. The velvet box beneath told Tessa it was some kind of jewelry. After one last glance at Jamie, who watched expectantly, Tessa popped it open. Inside was a beautiful silver necklace. The pendant shaped like—

“Is this County Derry?” she gasped.

Jamie nodded. “So you can carry a bit of home with you wherever you go.”

Tears welled up in Tessa’s eyes again, but this time with gratitude. There was a star engraved where the city of Derry was located, too. It was the sweetest gift she had ever received.

“Turn it over,” Jamie said.

Tessa flipped it without question. On the back was another engraving. In a neat script, the word “eternity.”

“Oh!” Tessa gasped as it dawned on her. “Is this—the Emily Dickinson poem?”

“Yeah,” Jamie replied. “She helped me understand my feelings more than anything these past few months, and texting you that poem felt like the first step towards us being together again.”

“Jamie, this is. . . ” Tessa took a deep breath. “This is beautiful. Thank you so much.”

“Of course, Tess. I love you.”

Tessa let the words percolate through her. They hadn’t said it to each other yet this time, even if they felt it. It was nice to hear.

“I love you, too.”

Jamie’s cheeks flushed pink as she cut her gaze to the floor. Tessa strode over and claimed her mouth in a deep kiss. She didn’t have the words to convey how much it meant to her to receive such a sweet gift. She hoped the kiss would do the trick.

When they parted, Jamie’s face had gone from pink to red. She swallowed and reached for the necklace. “Can I put it on you?”

“Of course!”

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