Page 99 of Love in Training
He reaches up to my cheek, wiping the next tear before it falls. And then he’s out of the chair, squeezing gently into the hospital bed until he’s pulled me into his arms.
“Since my brother died, I’ve been so focused on doing right by him—at first through Rufus. But then I started trying to do the same thing with you.”
He strokes my face, taking care to give my stitches a wide berth.
“But last night, when I heard you scream, when I didn’t know what was happening inside your apartment...” His voice breaks. “Kyle hardly crossed my mind, Caprice. I was just desperate to get to you.”
I lean into his big body then, wrapping my arms around his warm, too-firm chest. Getting as close to him as possible.
“I know you said what happened before was just sex,” he says so low it’s barely a whisper. “But I?—”
“I love you,” I say.
We each pause a heartbeat, listening as those words hit the air.
“Whatever I said before was bullshit. I felt everything you felt. I still do. And I willneverforget the way you made me come. But more than that, you’re not the person I thought you were, and it’s been magic realizing I was wrong. You make me feel safe. You love my dog.” My vision hazes again as we stare at each other. “And I love you.”
His lips are on mine before I can breathe. My hands twist in his hair, knocking his glasses askew. There are too many IVs and wires and beeps, and pretty soon, there’s a nurse in here yelling at me. But I don’t even care. All I hear is Drew uttering my words back to me, into my skin.
“I love you, Caprice. You are everything to me.”
EPILOGUE
ONE MONTH LATER
The front door swings open,and Drew draws me inside and into his arms before I even get my key in the lock. When our lips meet, his hand cups the back of my neck, and almost everything about the last eight hours ceases to feel important. Until he kisses along my cheek and whispers in my ear.
“At least five of us are dying to hear about your first day.”
Just as he says this, a big furry body presses against my thigh. I look down to find Rufus wedged between Drew’s jeans and my black crepe skirt, wagging his tail with delight. As he stands there, beaming up at me, Pudding, the bulldog, shoves betweenhislegs until they resemble some kind of mashed-up mythical creature. Drew’s German shepherd and border collie also circle us, albeit with a more respectful energy.
“Youare the reasons I’ve had to invest in a lifetime supply of pet hair rollers,” I say, carefully slipping out of my brand new Louboutins and sinking down to greet the dogs.
Rufus licks my face in reply, which still makes me cringe, but I let him. He goes straight for the fading line where the stitches used to be at my temple, and I instinctively run my fingers over the shaved spot on his chest. Both of us are healed, but we check in on each other’s scars.
“Can’t blame them for missing you.” Drew’s eyes twinkle as he extends a hand and pulls me back to my feet. “Now, how did it go?”
I bite my lip, releasing a satisfied sigh. “Well... it was flipping amazing.”
He doesn’t say anything, just breaks into a grin. An expression I’m still getting used to, but quickly coming to adore.
“It was completely overwhelming, but I loved every single second,” I say as he picks up my heels, stowing them in a dog-proof cabinet. “I had to start in HR and do all the new employee stuff. They have really tight security policies, so I appreciate that. Next, they gave me a tour of the entire building before introducing me to my department, which comprised about as many people as the entire staff at theObserver. And then I was shown tomy office”—I can’t help giggling, saying it is still a thrill—“which, okay, isn’t truly mine. I share it with another reporter. But it has a door and a window, and four entire more walls than I used to have around my desk. And Drew, mynameis on the door.”
“Already my favorite room in the building.” He smirks. “Who’s your officemate?”
“Her name is Jessica. We hit it off right away and even compared notes on some future projects. We’re both interested in a couple of recent disappearances near Fort Collins.” I bite my lip. “I also had a meeting with Monique King.”
“Ooh, the new Randall?” He leads me toward the big, cushy sofa. “How’d that go?”
He pauses to toss a ball to Rufus, who has clearly made himself at home. We worked out a custody agreement of sorts after what happened with my psycho stalker. Rufus stays with me every night, but once the job offer came in fromDenver Editorial,we decided he should spend his weekdays with Drew.As we’ve spent more time together over the last month, though, the custody lines have started to blur.
“It was actually a great conversation, and she was super welcoming.” I make a face. “But she still scares the crap out of me.”
“I’m pretty sure she knows how lucky she is to have you.” He pulls us down to the couch and me into his lap. “She’s probably anxious to secure awards for theEditorialwith the Colorado Press Club.”
My cheeks warm. “It was just a nomination. There’s no guarantee I’ll win.”
He folds his arms the way I’ve coached him to recently in his dog training videos—which instantly makes my throat go dry—then pins me with one of his adorable Clark Kent gazes. “There’s no guarantee you won’t.”
