Page 106 of Quake

And again, she’s off, sprinting back down the sports romance aisle. When she gets there, she can’t seem to find it. Her frustration seems to grow, as does how goddamn adorable she is.

She lets out a huff. “I don’t see it,” she tells me. That’s because this one has the spine turned toward the shelf.

“Look again,” I tell her, nodding my head toward the end of the shelf where the book can be found.

Finally, she realizes which one it is.

This is it.

She pulls it from the shelf and grips it tightly to her chest as she spins around to meet my gaze, but I’m already on my knee beside her.

Faint music trickles in around us, and my whole world stops.

Her plump bottom lip juts out in shock as she takes me in, and the moment she sees the ring tethered to the bookmark insideQuake, she falls to her knees in front of me.

I can’t help the laugh that rumbles through my chest at her completely ass-backward reaction to this.

“Lark, baby, what are you doing?” I ask.

Her eyes shimmer with moisture. “We’re equals. We should be eye level for this,” she squeaks out.

I shake my head gently, taking the book from her grasp and dislodging the ring. “Whatever you say,ma petite rouge.”

I set the book aside, and the moment I do, she scoots into my lap, her face just inches from mine. I have to fight hard to keep the laughter from my words as I profess my undying love to this woman for what’s probably the ten thousandth time since May.

“Before I met you, I never quite understood what it was like to love someone with every ounce of your being. To feel so connected to another person that it seems absolutely ridiculous to be apart for even a moment.”

Her eyes are already welling with tears.My sensitive girl.

“I’ve been surrounded by people who love not only me but each other my entire life. I’d thought I had at least some grasp on what it all means,” I say with a chuckle. “But god, I was sowrong.”

“You came into my life when I least expected it, and while it definitely wasn’t on an elevator, I can wholeheartedly say that your moving into my apartment building was divine intervention. As strange as this sounds, I kind of have myself convinced that Alex may have told that crow to toss Pickles that bone just so I could meet you,” I tell her, and her lips crack into a smile. “And when that didn’t work, he made sure you moved in so close to me that we couldn’t escape this invisible string tethering us together.”

She kisses the tip of my nose, laughing lightly on a watery half sob. “And then, that day when you invited me over and actually let me cook for you, I should’ve known right then that I was a goner,” I say, shaking my head. “As much as I’ve always enjoyed soccer, I’m so fucking thankful that it brought you even further into my life, as did my mom’s love of hockey romance and her ridiculous smutty book club.” Lark snorts at that.

“And finally, when you became such an essential part of my day, allowing me to enjoy music again and encouraging me to be better for myself rather than for anyone else. That was really when I knew I’d gone too far. There’s no turning back for me now, little red. I love you so much; it feels like I’ve lived every lifetime with you, and if there is an afterlife, I wouldn’t want to explore it with anyone else. And hell, if there’s not and we get reincarnated, something tells me we’ll be together then too.” I smile.

“But…” She snorts. “What if we’re slugs or something?” she asks, and it only widens my smile.

“Then I’ll love every moment of being a disgusting, slimy slug with you,ma petite rouge. Though, I sincerely hope that slugs liveveryshort lives so we can get back to being human again,” I tell her, my chest shaking with laughter.

She hums against me, wrapping her arms around my neck and bringing her lips to mine, pressing a soft kiss to them.

“Lark?” I ask softly, her body officially melted into mine.

“Hmm?” she says, completely content to just sit here with me on the floor of this bookstore.

“Lark, baby, are you gonna marry me or what?” I finally ask.

Her eyes snap up to mine, andfinally,she pulls my mouth to hers for a kiss that has my soul skyrocketing with joy. “Yes! In every lifetime and on every planet, yes. I love you more than words could ever express,” she tells me, those beautiful hazel eyes swimming with so many emotions as she meets my gaze.

“And I love you more than any song or poem could ever convey,” I tell her earnestly as I take her hand in mine, pressing a kiss to her knuckles before placing the ring on her finger,exactly where it belongs.

Epilogue: Part Two - Lark

Saturday, September 16, 2028

When I head back downstairs, following the sound of the piano drifting through the house, my heart swells. Just like it does every time I see this man.

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