Page 62 of Someday Not Soon

I lift her up fully, her long legs wrapping tightly around me as I press her against the shower wall. Her voice rises, trembling with the effort to say my name as she shatters beneath me, right as we come undone together, in a perfect, wild storm.

Feeling her warmth, skin-to-skin, as I finish inside—it feels like we’re completely connected, like nothing else exists but us. I hold her close, as we stand under the spray of the warm water. My heart slamming into my ribcage, the thrumming of her pulse against me.

As she slides down the front of my body, I brush a wet strand of hair out of her eyes. “You’re everything.Thisis everything.”

She smiles, cheeks still flushed from earlier. “It still amazes me that you think so highly of me.”

“It’s the truth. If someone asked me to describe my dream woman, I’d just say your name. Every single time. You’re everything that’s good in this world, El. No one else could ever come close to you.”

Her eyes soften, warmth spreading across her face as she tilts her head to meet my gaze. “Sometimes all I see in myself is the bad, the negative. Like I’m a dark storm cloud in a bright sky. But then you say things like that, and it makes me start to believe that maybe I’m wrong about myself. Maybe there is a light in me too. It makes me want to see myself the way you do.”

Her lips find mine, and we stay in our happy little bubble, ignoring anything that could burst the moment.

Eventually, I turn off the water and grab two towels, wrapping one around my waist and draping the other over her shoulders. We don’t say a word as we head straight to my bed, slipping under the covers together like it’s the most natural thing in the world. She curls into me, her head resting on my chest, the damp strands of her hair carrying the faint, sweet scent of almond from my shampoo. Her skin is smooth as she slips her feet beneath my leg. The rhythm of our breathing slows, chests rising and falling in unison, as if our bodies are tuning to the same frequency.

Half-asleep, she nestles in closer, and sighs. “Everything with you has always felt so right.”

And she’s not wrong. The only times I’ve ever felt whole in this world of madness is when I have her by my side.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Ella

Present

Madi:

Officially back from my honeymoon and ready for Pilates and Sips tomorrow. You ladies still in?

Ella

Welcome back! And yep, I’m so there.

Delaney

Of course, I’m in. We carpooling? I’ll drive.

Ella

There’s a little change to where you’ll need to pick me up from…

I’m kind of living at Jude’s. BUT ONLY FORTWO WEEKS OR SO.

Madi

Excuse me, what?!

Delaney

I’m so here for this.

Madi

My best friend and brother moving in together…I think this means we’re almost sisters-in-law?

Ella

Keyword is TEMPORARY. He’s only helping me out.

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