Page 207 of Brooklyn Cupid

He’s in swim shorts, my half-naked god, my Cupid who on a random night in Brooklyn shot me and changed my life.

This feels like a dream.

Heisa dream.

Happiness is tangible. It’s on his fingertips that gently stroke my hair. On his lips that softly kiss my shoulder. In his gaze that makes my skin tingle with love every breathing second.

“Please, sit,” I tell him.

He takes a seat on the edge of our bed, and his eyes drop to the book in my hands. “Will you read it to me?”

He’s read the final version of the book, of course. But I want to read the epilogue because it was written for him.

And I read.

I have to.

It’s my confession, and this time, I do it in person and let the love of my life know how much he means to me.

“The world is colors, shades, and tones,” I read from the last page of my book though I know the words by heart. “There are opaque colors. And there are translucent ones. And then there are vibrant ones. No, not neon. Those scream and are too straightforward. Vibrant are the ones that don’t blind you but capture you, hold your breath, then take it away. They hypnotize, magnetic in their nature, like a Cupid’s arrow that slowly infuses love into your heart.”

Jace’s smile grows bigger.

“That’s how I started seeing the world when I met you. The world was always in color, but you made them burst.”

I take a deep breath, my heart squeezing so tight, it hurts.

“Fate is a roulette,” I continue. “The ball always falls into a slot. Occasionally, it’s a win. Rarely, it’s a jackpot. Once in a lifetime, it’s a life-changing shot. Yours was forty-forty, the perfect sniper’s score. Perfect, like you.”

I raise my eyes to his. What I’m about to say is not in the book.

“Down the road, love, you would’ve met many women who would’ve tripped over themselves to make you happy. You deserve it. You are amazing. You make people want to do good things and be good. Many women would’ve fallen head over heels in love with you if you let them. But your Cupid’s arrow hit me hard. And I fell first. Head over heels and up to my ears.”

A soft chuckle escapes Jace, but his eyes are full of endless love he gifts me with every day.

“If you hadn’t come back to ask about the room for rent, we would’ve met again. In my heart, I know it. And now all those what-ifs don’t matter because I’m never letting you go. You are my best friend. My lover. My muse. You are the fire I never saw coming. The most beautiful human being. My favorite color. My favorite poem. You are it. Don’t you ever forget it, baby.”

I smile, wanting to hug the world. Him.Heis my world.

“I love you, Jace Reed. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being.”

Slowly, he gets up and steps up to me, placing his hands on my hips.

“I have something for you,” I say and pull a little box out of my pocket and pass it to him.

His eyes flicker to the box, then to me, then back to the box as he opens it.

“An arrow?”

“Yes.” It’s a golden arrow on a chain. “I have the matching piece.” I tug at the gold chain around my neck, showing him the red heart with an indentation. “Look.” I take his arrow and snap it into place against the heart. “It’s one piece, see?”

Jace lets me put the chain on him, his eyes never leaving mine.

I chuckle, nervous at what I am about to say. This isn’t the traditional way. Maybe it’s not romantic, but I’ve made up my mind, though I don’t have the rings.

“Jace, I want to ask you something,” I say quietly, summoning the courage. Not because I’m afraid to hear the wrong answer but because it’s emotional, and girls don’t usually do this. He’s mine, and this is just a little legal step to seal it. Mom and Dad were ecstatic about the idea.

I take a deep breath and meet Jace’s eyes, saying the words that I’ve practiced in front of the mirror so many times.

---