Page 121 of Once Upon a Fake Date

A small smile curled on my lips as I watched her, not wanting to disturb her as the movie played. Her blonde hair was sprawled out over our bed, and I couldn’t help but play with it, running my fingers through the soft strands.

“Mmm,” Audrey moaned, nuzzling against me further in sleep. “Parker…”

I ran my thumb over her cheekbones, tracing each inch of her face like I could memorize it from touch alone.

Finally, her eyes fluttered open.

“Hey.” I shifted my position, sitting up against the pillow so I could watch her fully.

“Sorry I fell asleep,” she whispered.

“It’s fine, sunshine,” I said, kissing her forehead. “I like watching you sleep.”

She blushed. “Stop saying things like that.”

“Like what?” I asked, knowing I was playing coy and trying to hide my smile.

She playfully smacked my arm. “You know what I mean. Don’t pull an Edward Cullen. And I don’t need true love’s kiss to wake me up.”

“No, but does it hurt to try?” I grinned. That was always her favorite fairytale growing up. After the prince had slain the dragon, he found his princess, his true love, and woke her up with a kiss. A smirk covered my lips. “The dragon was slayed, after all. And you love me. So I guess what they say is true. And they all lived happily ever after.”

Audrey smiled. “I think I can live with that.”

So could I.

Pulling her into my arms, I nuzzled my face against her neck, letting her sweet strawberry scent wash over me. Letting the knowledge that she was my happy ending—that despite everything, we were here together—rush over me, filling me with warmth and love beyond comparison.

Her eyes drifted closed again as she fell asleep in my arms.

“I love you,” I murmured against her ear. The words could never express the enormity of what I truly felt, but they were a start.

Epilogue

PARKER

ONE YEAR LATER…

Stepping off the stage with my diploma in hand, I took a deep breath.I did it.As of today, I was officially a graduate of Castleton University with my Bachelors of Architecture. Five years went by in the blink of an eye. These last two, all I wanted was to slow time down. To be able to cherish the memories we were making. The time I got to spend with her.

But that wasn’t how life worked. It came at you, a hundred miles per hour, whether you were ready or not. Just like a ball goes into the net. Sometimes, you missed. Sometimes, you got the goal.

Or, in my case, the girl. The perfect girl who I didn’t deserve, but was sure as fuck glad I had.

Heading back to my seat, I looked around the room. Somewhere in the crowd were my parents, sitting next to Audrey’s. It felt right that they were sitting together. Like we were back where we started. Except this time, we weren’t just neighbors or best friends. We were together. Calling Audrey my girlfriend—myrealgirlfriend—for this last year had been the biggest joy of my life.

Especially living in our apartment together off-campus. After living with other people for multiple years, there was nothing better than coming home to her every single day.

Something I couldn’t wait to do for the rest of our lives.

The ceremony ended, and we all shuffled out of the arena to greet our family and friends.

Audrey’s blonde hair shone in the sun, illuminating her like a golden halo surrounding her. She’d unzipped her gown, showing off the pink dress she wore underneath, along with the star pendant I’d given her. Her cap was decorated in pink roses, glitter, and butterflies, and it was soher.God, I loved her.

I loved every single bit of her.

How could anyone ever think she was too much? She was everything.

“Parker!” my girl exclaimed, catching sight of me.

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