Page 114 of Fall Into Me

“The house?”

“That’s Primrose Ranch. It actually belonged to Sammy’s grandfather. He died a few years ago. No one lives there now, but she still goes once a week to clean it up.”

He didn’t say anything, just waited for me to keep going.

“Dylan is Sammy’s cousin. I don’t know if you know that.”

I saw him shake his head from the corner of my eye.

I nodded, still tracing the house with my eyes. “Growing up, I was always wherever Delilah was, and she was always wherever Dylan was. He was always here with his older brother, Jessie. Sammy too, with her older brother.”

Fane looked from my face to the house like he was trying to picture a little version of me sitting on the steps of the big wrap-around porch.

“I loved it here,” I said softly. “As a kid, I thought I’d never love another house more than the one I grew up in. But over the last couple of years, I’d come here, park in this exact spot, just to stare at it. I think I’ve realized I love it more. I didn’t realizewhyuntil last night, though.”

“Why?” Fane was still looking away from me, his eyes glued to the house too.

“Tell me what you see?”

He didn’t hesitate this time. “I see space. A house. Mountains.”

“What do you feel?”

“Your hand in mine. The sun on my face.”

I hummed as I closed my own eyes and asked him my last question.

I closed my eyes, letting his words sink in. “What do you hear?”

After a second, he finally whispered his reply. “Nothing.”

“How does it all make you feel?” I asked him before slowly opening my eyes to find his already on me, catching the sun the way they always did. Brilliant. Incandescent.

“Peaceful.”

I smiled, a small exhale of relief slipping past my lips.

I’d always thought this was what reminded me of Darling the most—the perfect representation of the town I loved. But it was never more clear to me now that I’d always thought of Darling as loud, laughter-filled, and vibrant.

This place, though. This quiet, purple-hued corner of the world? It reminded me of Fane.

“Peace is hard to come by,” I said. “Why would you ever want to disturb the pockets of it that exist?”

He leaned over the seat, his lips finding mine in a kiss that was slow and intentional. Then he placed another on myjaw, lingering just long enough for me to feel the weight of his understanding.

I knew he’d heard everything I’d said. Loud and clear.

34

Calista

After

Ashton confessed that we were now completely out of ingredients for cookies.

After I chased him around, trying to pinch any part of his body I could grab onto, and he started crying like a little baby asking Fane for help, I was hauled out of my own café. My only consolation was a verbal promise that the cookie ingredients would be replaced before I was back to work the following Friday and that he had a good number for someone who could help me with my aggression.

“I love her aggression, you asshole. Replace the cookies!” Fane called out over his shoulder.

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