Page 139 of Give My Everything
“But I will never, ever,everbe lying to you when I tell you I love you.”
She rests her forehead against mine. “Good, because I’m in love with you, too.”
I let out a long, relieved breath, not having even realized I was waiting for her to tell me she felt the same. Now that she has, I’m overwhelmed by the rush of emotions flooding my body.
This, between us, the realness of it…wasn’t anything I ever expected to happen. I assumed what Krissa did to me was going to be enough to keep me from falling for anyone ever again, thought my ability to trust was going to be forever shattered and beyond repair.
Now, I can feel in my bones that that’s not true.
What I felt for Krissa wasn’t love in the first place, and it certainly didn’t hold a candle to what I feel now, for Remmy.
No. What I felt for Krissa was something else entirely.
I think I was in love with being what she wanted, with being the object of her desire and affection. How I felt about her was directly correlated to how she made me feel, which makes sense when I consider my life spent away from women and partying. It was new and exciting and surprising.
But it wasn’t timeless.
What I used to believe was love was actually a superficial attempt at finding something meaningful.
Now that I’ve found the depth of love I feel for Remmy, I can’t imagine ever wanting to wade in shallow waters again.
“So, this isn’t fake anymore, huh?” she asks, her eyes still tinged with pink from her earlier tears but her mood much higher and happier than before.
I lift my hand and stroke the side of her face, tucking some of her loose hair behind her ears. “No. It’s not fake.”
“Do you think…it would be crazy if we made it really real?”
My eyes fly to hers and I pull back slightly to get a look at her face.
“What?”
“I mean, why don’t we just…go. Go to Vegas or the courthouse or something and make it official. Just you and me. Forever, today, tomorrow—right now.”
I chuckle and pull her closer to me so we’re snuggled closer together on my bed—ourbed. Then I kiss the crown of her head where her big bun of messy hair is sticking up and wild.
“I love that idea, but let’s still give it a little more time.”
“Why?”
“As bad as things are now, I know you love your mom and your family. You’ll want them to be there, even if you feel angry now.”
She sighs, her breath warm against me, heating me through my shirt.
“And to be honest, I’ll want my family there, too.”
Her head flies back, her eyes wide.
“I mean my mom, you little nutball,” I say, rolling my eyes. “My dad willdefinitelynot be invited.”
Remmy nods, returning to her earlier position, her head resting against my chest.
But then there’s a long pause of silence, and I can tell she has something to say.
“Spit it out. I can hear you thinking.”
“How did things get so bad?” she asks, her fingers coming out and tracing along the seam of my shirt. “Was it really the way you told me before? About you and Krissa?”
Shifting us around, I prop myself up on my elbow so I can look her in the face.
