Page 29 of Ryder
“I’m in love with you.” Now that I’ve said it once, I can’t stop. “Have been for months. Since before the flood, before all this. Since the first time I saw you light up talking about the perfect pie crust.”
“But you said—”
“I said what I always say when I’m terrified.” I close the distance between us, heart pounding. “Because the last time I let myself fall this hard, it nearly broke me. But this...” I cup her face in my hands. “This is different. You’re different.”
Tears sparkle in her eyes. “How?”
“Because you make everything better just by being near it. Because watching you chase your dreams makes me want to be better. Because the thought of you leaving...” My voice cracks. “It scares me more than letting you in ever did.”
A tear slips down her cheek. I catch it with my thumb.
“I don’t want uncomplicated,” I continue softly. “I want you. Morning breath and flour fights and everything in between. I want to wake up to your baking experiments and fall asleep to your recipe planning. I want—”
Her mouth crashes into mine, cutting off my words. I pull her close, pouring everything I feel into the kiss. All the fear and hope and desperate love.
When we finally break apart, both breathing hard, she presses her forehead to mine.
“Say it again.”
“I love you.” I brush my lips across her temple, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. “I love you. I love—”
This time when she kisses me, it tastes like promise. Like future. Like everything I’ve been too scared to want.
“The show...” she starts.
“We’ll figure it out.” I hold her tighter. “Whatever you want to do, wherever you want to go. Just... don’t go thinking this isn’t real. That you don’t mean everything to me.”
She pulls back just enough to meet my eyes. “I love you too, you know. Even when you’re being an idiot.”
“Especially then?”
Her laugh is watery but real. “Especially then.”
“So what do you want to do?” I brush her hair back, needing to touch her. “About the show?”
She bites her lip, thinking. “I want to go to the audition.”
My heart stumbles, but I nod. “Okay.”
“Not to leave,” she adds quickly. “But to prove I can. That I made the right choice choosing this life.” She gestures around the kitchen. “Even if I don’t take the permanent position.”
“You don’t have to choose.” The idea hits me suddenly. “Between your dreams and... this. Us.”
“What do you mean?”
“The guest house kitchen.” I pull her closer, excitement building. “We could convert it. Make it your test kitchen, your workspace. You could consult remotely, develop recipes, maybe even do online classes...”
Her eyes light up. “You’d do that?”
“Sugar, I’d do anything for you.” I kiss her softly. “Including letting you go chase your dreams in New York. But if you want to stay...”
“I want both.” She winds her arms around my neck. “The show, the opportunities, but also... home. You.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do.” I lift her onto the counter, settling between her legs. “But first...”
“First?”
“First, I’m going to show you exactly how uncomplicated this isn’t.”
