Page 56 of Fight for You (Flirting with Forever 2)

And now … we wait.

Chapter 34

Hadleigh

“Did you know that when two lovers gaze into each other’s eyes, their hearts synchronize?” Sawyer looks at me expectantly. I try to smile, but I’m so nervous, I feel

like puking on my shoes.

“Hadleigh, it’s going to be fine. We’ll deal with whatever decisions are made. No matter what, everything is going to be okay. Promise.”

I breathe in deeply and hold it, nodding, before letting it out in one big whoosh. Sawyer has proven himself to be a man who will stand by me through thick and thin, not just when I’m the easy, convenient choice. “I’m glad you’re confident because I’m nervous as hell.”

“Baby, I’m confident because I know that no matter what happens, we’ll figure things out—together.” He samples the meat sauce he’s been cooking.

“You really mean that?” The wobble in my voice has him setting the spoon down and pulling me to him.

His hands rest on my hips as he looks into my eyes. “Of course I do.” His fingers press into my skin. “I kind of thought you felt the same.”

I scan his features and swallow. Oh. Oh, man. “Sawyer, I do. Um. I’m not really good with stuff like this.” Does he understand why this is so hard for me? I know he’s been waiting. He’s told me he loves me, and I haven’t been able to say it back. I’ve tried, but every time I open my mouth, it clamps shut again. It’s not because I don’t want to tell him. I do. I’m just terrified.

“Stuff like what?”

“Um. Oh.” I frown. “I—” I take another big breath. “I—”

A smile spreads across his face. “Hadleigh, did you know that falling in love produces several euphoria-inducing chemicals? It’s almost like being on certain drugs. Twelve areas of the brain are stimulated all at the same time.” His eyes twinkle.

“You definitely stimulate me, Sawyer.” In a lightning-quick move, I throw my body against his and hold on for all I’m worth.

He chuckles roughly into my hair, his strong arms wrapping tightly around me. “You stimulate me, too, Hadleigh.”

I look up at him and see my future before me. A single tear falls down my cheek, and he brushes his lips past it, kissing it away. “Sawyer, I never would have guessed when you showed up at school the first day that you’d be the one teaching me a lesson. But you have.”

“And what lesson would that be? Knowledge of assorted weird trivia aside.”

“That I’m worthy of love. That I can have what so many others do. That I’m not broken. I’m more alive and myself with you than I’ve ever been with anyone before.” I swallow past the lump in my throat. “I’ve never said this to anyone before—I love you, Sawyer Rivers.”

He smiles down at me, and I swear there are tears in his eyes, too. “Had, I think I’ve been waiting for someone like you. You’re the one I want to create my history with—the history of us.”

Epilogue

Piper

That’s just about the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. Hadleigh just told us how she finally told Sawyer she loves him. I’m so happy she’s found someone like him. He’s been good to her, and good for her, despite the stumbling blocks right at the beginning. I just hope everything works out with the Ed issue. That hasn’t been fully resolved yet, and I’m a little concerned.

“He asked if it would be okay to move in with me once he’s done with his placement. He says he doesn’t like being apart from me and it’s hard sleeping without me.” Hadleigh sighs, a completely giddy, lovesick smile on her face.

Quinn snorts beside me. “Oh, I bet it’s hard when you’re sleeping next to him, too.”

“It sounds like it’s hard all the time,” Madison laughs.

Hadleigh giggles. “Hey, those are my kind of lines.”

Sophia looks up from Hadleigh’s book choice—the erotic romance Sawyer discovered in Hadleigh’s bag a few weeks ago. We’d been discussing it before our conversation went off the rails again. “And everything went okay where you-know-who is concerned?”

You-know-who is Ed, but we’ve made a pact not to bring up his name again after all the trouble he’s caused Hadleigh.

Zoey shrugs. “I tried to ask Mi—Mr. Steele about it, but he said he wasn’t at liberty to discuss it.” She grins, her cheeks glowing pink. “But then he winked at me, so I figured everything was okay.”

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