Page 121 of Catching Feelings

“Miles,” she whispers.

I see the trepidation in her eyes. She was never the one to initiate sex or even kissing when we were together. This is a bold move for her, and I’m so fucking proud of her. So fucking horny and I’m worried my dick is going to break off, it’s so hard, but fucking proud.

She shifts, uncomfortable under my gaze, and I hate that I make her feel this way. But I need her to understand. Ineedher to know how much she means to me. As much as it pains me to say it, I need to know she’s doing this for her and not because she thinks it’s what I want.

I mean, fuck, I want. I want so fucking bad.

The silence stretches, pulling taut like a wire between us. Then she inhales, her chest rising with the kind of shaky breath that makes my chest ache.

“Miles. I’m in love with you.” Her voice is barely above a whisper, but it hits me like a sucker punch, a wave of raw honesty in her words.

I stare at her, still processing, but I have no time to question. She’s looking at me now—really looking at me, her eyes wide, vulnerable, but steady.So steady.It’s like she’s finally letting go of the fear that had been holding her back for so long.

“Say it again.” My throat is thick with emotion. “I needed to hear you say it, Rowan. I need you to say it again, so I know it wasn’t just me hoping for something that would never come.”

She steps forward, her eyes dark with a quiet intensity. “I love you,” she says simply. “You’ve always been here.” She picks up my hand and covers her heart with it. Her skin is hot and smooth under my calloused fingers.

Rowan releases me, then reaches up and cups my face in her hands. The gentleness of the gesture almost shatters me. Her fingers are warm, trembling ever so slightly, as if she’s afraid I might pull away.

But I’m not going anywhere. Not this time. Not ever.

The words tumble out of her in a rush, like she’s been carrying them for too long: “I love you. I’ve loved you for so long, Miles. I just didn’t know how to tell you. Or...maybe I was too afraid that you wouldn’t feel the same.”

The world tilts on its axis.

She loves me.

I can hardly breathe. Her confession hits me like a storm, violent and beautiful, all at once. I’ve spent so many nights wondering if she felt the same, wondering if I was crazy to hold on to this quiet, aching hope that maybe, just maybe, she might look at me the way I’ve always looked at her.

But now...now it’s real. Her love is real.

I move forward, my pulse roaring in my ears. My hand finds hers, clasping it with a fierceness that I know mirrors the way my heart is pounding in my chest.

“I love you too, Rowan.” The words come out in a breathless rush, like I’ve been holding them back for a lifetime. “I’ve beenin lovewith you for so long, and I thought...I thought I’d lost my chance. But hearing you say it, God...I can’t even—”

I don’t finish the sentence. I don’t need to.

She’s in my arms, her warmth wrapping around me like a shield, like a promise. And when her lips meet mine, so soft, so tentative at first, I feel everything I ever wanted in the world rise up inside me. The kiss deepens, slow and steady, as if we’re both afraid to rush, as if we’re savoring the moment of finally,finallybeing exactly where we are meant to be.

And in this kiss, I realize something. I spent so long believing she was out of reach, that somehow I wasn’t worthy of her love. But now, with her in my arms, I understand that all this time, we’ve been on the same page, both of us too scared to leap.

But we did. Together.

And it’s more than I ever dreamed of.

She pulls away just enough to rest her forehead against mine, her breath warm against my skin. “I’m going to try my best to be better at communicating. Will you be patient with me?”

“Rowan.” I tip my head back and stare deep into her eyes. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Her eyes soften, a quiet smile curving on her lips. “Good,” she says, her thumb brushing over the curve of my jaw. “Because I’m not going anywhere, either.”

“But I don’t think I can be patient tonight.” I slide my hands under her coat and push it down her arms. When it falls to the floor and pools around her feet, I let out a deep sigh. “Fuck. You’re gorgeous.”

“I wasn’t sure what you’d think of me coming over like this. I’ve never seduced a man before.”

“Baby.” I lean in and brush my lips over hers. “You can seduce me morning, noon, and night and it still won’t be enough.”

I take the kiss deeper when a knock on the door breaks us apart.

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