Page 133 of Meet Me in the Valley
A rush of adrenaline pulses through me as I accept the video call.
“There’s my girl.”
“I look awful.”
“Don’t talk about my future wife like that.”
“Logan,” I giggle, cheeks instantly flushing. “You’re so dumb.” I cover my face, the heat of the blush blooming under my palm.
“Don’t do that,” he says softly. “I’ve missed that smile.”
I peek through my splayed fingers, then drop my hand with a teasing huff. “This smile?”
I bare my teeth in the most exaggerated, unflattering way I can manage. He bursts out laughing, the sound coiling around me like something I’ve been starving for. He tips his head back, and for a second, I just take him in.
Sleep still clings to his eyes, soft and half-lidded, and his hair is a complete mess. Flattened on one side, sticking up on the other like he fought a pillow and lost.
God, he looks so good.
It reminds me of waking up in his arms, tangled in sheets and sunlight, with his lips pressed to my temple as he stares down at me, sated and happy.
“That’s the one. Damn, I love that smile.”
The fake grin I gave him fades, melting into something real. The one that only ever shows up for him.
We fall quiet as we stare at each other. Soaking in the space between us, filling it with everything we’ve missed. There’s something lighter and unburdened in him. Even with sleep still clinging to his lashes, he looks rested. Whole. His skin glows. His eyes shine.
Then his voice draws me back in.
“You asked me if I’m a man deserving now.”
The question hangs in the air between us, reverent. I nod slowly, the corners of my smile still tugging upward, though my heart is pounding like crazy.
He leans into the camera just slightly, gaze locked on mine.
“I want you to look at me when I answer, because I need you to see how much I mean it.”
I hold my breath.
“I’m not perfect, T. I won’t pretend to be. But I’m not the same man you walked away from. I just need you to know … I’ve changed. I’m done running. For the first time in my life, I feel free.”
The moment the words leave him, I believe it. I believe it so deeply my bones ache with the truth of it.
His gaze holds mine, rooted and unshakable.
“I’m not only a man deserving of you now,” Logan rasps, full of unwavering confidence. “I’m the man who won’t let you go this time.”
Tears well up before I can stop them, blurring the screen, his face. But I don’t look away. Iwantto see him. I want to memorize this version of him—the man he’s become. The one I always hoped he’d find within himself.
“Come back to me,” I whisper, clutching the phone so tight I hope he feels it on the other side. The need to hug him, kiss him, breathe him in.
“Soon, T. I swear. Do you trust me?”
With my heart.
With the parts of me no one else has ever touched.
With my whole fucking life.
