Page 56 of When Summer Returns

“I’m not going anywhere,” she whispered, meaning it more than she’d meant anything in years.

He rose then, drawing her up with him without releasing her hand. They stood facing each other in the soft glow of fairy lights, the space between them charged with fifteen years of wanting and two weeks of rediscovery.

“Jessie,” he began, her name a prayer on his lips.

She stepped into him before he could continue, her free hand sliding up his chest to curl around the back of his neck. Their lips met with the inevitability of tides returning to shore, gentle at first, then with increasing urgency as bodies remembered what minds had tried to forget.

His arms circled her waist, drawing her closer until they fit together as perfectly as they always had. The kiss deepened, years of separation dissolving in the heat building between them. Her fingers tangled in his hair, holding him to her as if he might disappear should she let go.

When they finally broke apart, both breathing heavily, Luke rested his forehead against hers. “I’ve been wanting to do that properly since I saw you standing in my bar.”

“You took your time,” she teased, though her voice trembled slightly.

“I’m done waiting,” he replied, his tone making it clear he meant far more than kisses.

Her body thrummed with answering need, but something made her pull back slightly, needing to see his face clearly. “Luke, I should tell you—it’s been a long time for me. There hasn’t been anyone serious since?—”

He silenced her with another kiss, this one achingly tender. “We have all the time in the world, Jess. We can go as slow as you need.”

The consideration in his voice nearly undid her. This man who’d waited fifteen years offered to wait longer still if that’s what she needed. But standing there in the circle of his arms, the sound of waves a steady backdrop to their reunion, Jessie knew with bone-deep certainty that she’d done enough waiting.

“Take me to bed, Luke,” she said simply.

His eyes darkened, searching hers for any hesitation. Finding none, he lifted her into his arms in a smooth motion that should have felt silly but somehow didn’t. “I thought you’d never ask.”

Their path to his bedroom left a trail of discarded clothing—her sundress puddled at the foot of the stairs, his shirt abandoned in the hallway. By the time they reached his bed, they were down to essentials, skin heated with anticipation.

Luke laid her on the bed with a reverence that made her heart ache, following her down until they lay face-to-face in the soft lamplight. His hand traced the curve of her hip, calloused fingertips raising goose bumps in their wake.

“You’re even more beautiful now,” he murmured, eyes mapping every inch of her exposed skin.

She reached up to stroke his face, marveling at the contrast between the boy she’d loved and the man before her now. Time had carved definition into his features, added muscle to his frame, left evidence of a life fully lived in the small scars and sun lines that marked him.

“So are you,” she whispered.

His smile was quick and devastating before he lowered his head to capture her lips once more.

* * *

After, they lay tangled in sheets and each other, her head on his chest, his hand tracing idle patterns on her back. The room was quiet save for their gradually slowing breaths and the distant sound of waves continuing their eternal dance with the shore.

“You okay?” Luke asked, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

Jessie smiled against his skin, feeling more truly okay than she had in fifteen years. “Better than okay.”

His arm tightened around her, holding her close as if he might still fear she’d disappear come morning. She understood the sentiment; part of her couldn’t quite believe this wasn’t some elaborate dream from which she’d wake alone in her sterile Savannah apartment.

“I meant what I said earlier,” she murmured, needing him to understand the depth of her commitment. “I’m not going anywhere, Luke. Not this time.”

“Good.” His voice rumbled beneath her ear. “Because I’m not letting you go again.”

The simple declaration held no threat, only promise. Not a cage to confine her, but an anchor to keep her grounded while she explored all the possibilities this new life might hold.

Outside, the island continued its post-hurricane recovery, wounds gradually healing under the care of those who loved it most. Inside, wrapped in each other’s arms, Luke and Jessie did the same—not erasing the scars of the past, but incorporating them into the foundation of something stronger, more resilient, and infinitely more precious for having nearly been lost.

Tomorrow would bring more cleanup, more decisions, more steps toward whatever future they would build together. But tonight was for healing, for reconnection, for the simple joy of finding home in each other’s arms after too many years adrift.

Jessie drifted toward sleep, Luke’s heartbeat a steady rhythm beneath her ear, and knew with absolute certainty that she had finally, truly come home.

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