Page 111 of Where We Belong

“You really thought I’d let my girl compete at the fucking Olympics and not be there for her?” He pulls his head back so our gazes can meet, the green of his reminding me of that first bloom of April in Vermont. “Not a chance in the world.”

“But what about your meeting?”

“Canceled it a while ago.” He shakes his head. “Was never gonna happen.”

I bring my hands to his face so I can trace his nose, his sharp cheekbones. “I can’t believe you’re really here.” I’m a big girl. I would’ve been fine on my own. But damn if I’m not relieved he showed up. Tomorrow—and the week to come—is going to be one of the biggest days of my life, and going through it with the man I now consider my pillar will only make the experience smoother.

“Good surprise, I hope?”

I smile before kissing him again. “Very.”

“I won’t keep you up for long.” Gently, he sits me down on the bed. “I just need to say a few words first.”

I lift my brows.

“What? I was supposed to be here earlier, but my plane was late, so I’ll do this quick.” He takes my hands in his and presses a kiss to my knuckles. “I want you to know that whatever happens tomorrow, it will never change the way I feel for you. You’re one of the strongest people I know, and I’m so fucking proud of you. A medal doesn’t mean anything.”

“Honestly? It doesn’t matter much to me either.” I shrug. “I only ever wanted to get here, and I did it. A podium would only be icing on the cake.” My head tilts to the side. “Really freaking tasty icing, but icing nonetheless.” I never thought I could be this serene the day before the Games, but I’m glad I am. I also know that I’m officially retiring from professional gymnastics after this, focusing instead on coaching, so whatever happens, I want to enjoy every second of it.

“Good.” He kisses me, and when he pulls back, there’s a new emotion on his face. It looks like…nerves? “And there’s something else.” He swallows roughly. “You know how much I love you, Lexie, right? Like the entire universe could fit in my chest when I’m with you. And I can’t imagine ever getting enough of that.” A sharp exhale. “So I wanted to know if you would do me the honor of— Oh fuck, I forgot to kneel.”

My smile is so big it pulls at all the muscles in my face as Finn drops to his knees in front of me and drags a hand down his face. “God, I’m sorry. I’m a mess, but only because just thinking about the possibility of spending my life with you sounds too good to be true.”

I feel tears cloud my vision, and I don’t try to hold them back.

“Let me try again, okay?” he says.

With a thick voice, I say, “Go ahead.”

“Lexie,” he says, his hands slightly trembling in mine. “I never expected you. For a long, long time, I thought I’d spend my life alone. And then, one random September day, you showed up. The one who understood my loneliness and helped me tear it down. And since then, not a single day has passed when I haven’t felt part of something bigger than me.”

He inhales shakily. “I think a part of me fell in love with you the moment you threw me onto my ass out of that cabin.”

I guffaw. “I didn’t throw you out!”

“Semantics,” he says, then winks. “And if I’d been smarter, a part of me definitely should’ve fallen for you in that small alley in Rome. Still sorry about that, by the way.”

I laugh even as tears stream down my cheeks. Who knew being stolen from meant the chance at finding the love of my life?

“But more than that, I lost all of my heart to you when I discovered the funny, smart, amazing person you are. You showed me what it meant to be loved in your entirety, and I’ll never be able to thank you enough for that.”

I’m shaking too now, too many emotions coursing through me to begin to name them. Finn lets go of one of my hands in order to wipe the tears off my face, then rests his hand on my cheek. “You asked me once if I had a dream like yours, and I told you no, but that’s not true anymore.Youare that dream for me. Spending my life with you. That’s what I’ll give anything to get. So once again, let me ask you one thing.” He opens his mouth to repeat his question, but stops before saying a word. In a quick gesture, he gets to his feet and scrambles to the backpack he just dropped to the floor, then returns to me with a small velvet box.

“Really need to work on that proposal game,” he says.

“Who needs smoothness anyway?”

He smirks, then kneels once more. “Alexandria Tuffin—Crabby—I love you more than time and words could ever express, and I’d be really, really honored if you agreed to become my wife.”

He pulls the box open, revealing a delicate gold ring, adorned with multiple small diamonds, the sight reminding me of a starlit sky. It won’t catch on anything when I’ll be exercising or coaching, and I’d bet everything I have that this is partly why he picked it. I bring a hand to my mouth, once again overwhelmed by it all.

“Yes.” I nod, another set of tears leaking from my eyes. “Yes, of course I’ll marry you.”

His entire face lights up, brighter than the diamonds on the ring. He doesn’t even take the time to make sure the ring fits before his hands are in my hair and his lips are on mine. He then proceeds to make love to me and prove his words with every single one of his touches.

When we’re done, we lie in bed, our naked bodies tangled in the sheets, and I feel just like he said: part of a whole. Like I’ll never be all of me without him. I can’t even be nervous about the amount of sleep I skipped because I’m stuck in a lavender haze.

“You picked your night, didn’t you?” I say, chucking him under the chin.

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