Page 120 of Prove You Wrong

‘I chose to.’ I shrug. It wasn’t a hard choice at the end of the day; I loved my bike, but I love Ella more.

The ‘L’ word seems to float on the edge of my subconscious, hovering on the periphery of my inner ramblings, unsure whether it’s welcome. It doesn’t make me flinch like I always anticipated it would. In fact, it feels … right.

Holy Fuckballs. I love Ella.

Unaware of my internal profound revelation, she pulls away slightly, cheeks glistening, nose pink. ‘But what about volunteering for Blood Bikes? And how are you going to get around?’

‘I’m still helping out with the charity. We have to ride their bikes, not our own. And, as for wheels, I traded Betty for Randy.’

‘Randy?’ She half laughs, wiping at her cheeks.

‘Randy the Ranger.’ I nod with a smirk. ‘I traded with Chunk. He’s had his eye on Betty for a while now.’

‘Randy!’ she hoots. ‘That’s the perfect name for her.’

‘You’ve got Rusty, I’ve got Randy.’ I drop another kiss onto her head, inhaling her fragrance.

She quiets suddenly, looking up at me. ‘But I can’t believe you got rid of Betty.’

I lean forwards. ‘If it’s you or the bike,’ I say softly, slowly, so she’s in no doubt, ‘I’d make the same choice again in a heartbeat.’

She doesn’t break eye contact, doesn’t blink. ‘I’d never ask you to make that choice,’ she breathes shakily.

‘You didn’t have to.’ I tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. ‘I just figured you needed to know; it’ll always be you.’

Finally, a smile lights up her face, as if she’s believing me at last. Weaving my fingers deeper into her hair, the way I always do when I need to get as close to her as possible, I pull her in, my forehead touching hers, her cold nose pressed to mine.

I feather kisses over her face until I reach her lips, then I can’t stop myself from consuming her, like she’s the last drop of water in a desert.

Frantic at first, as if trying to make up for lost time, we eventually slow, easing into a languorous kiss. There’s no need to rush; it feels like now we have forever.

My cheeks feel damp and I’m not sure which one of us is crying. Maybe we both are.

Ella pulls back slightly, setting her big brown eyes on me, top teeth tugging on her bottom lip. ‘So, dare I hope you’ve forgiven me?’

‘Of course.’ I brush her cheek with my thumb. ‘I knew you didn’t really mean it. You were hurting. Scared.’ I frown, not sure how to explain that I absolutely get it. ‘You were protecting your family. No reason to apologise for that.’

‘Well, I appreciate your understanding, but I was wrong and I handled it awfully.’ She shakes her head as she continues to punish herself. ‘I’m so sorry.’ Her eyes close, long lashes dark against her cheek. ‘I said I wouldn’t hurt you –– ’

‘And you didn’t,’ I interrupt. ‘I knew what you were trying to do. If I felt any hurt it was for you, that you were going through all that guilt.’ I tilt her chin up, studying her face for a moment. ‘Please stop,’ I whisper.‘Your love for your family is part of the reason I love you.’

‘But I — Wait! What?’ Flying open, her eyes blaze into mine. ‘You love me?’ Her voice hitches.

I chuckle and she frowns.

‘What’s so funny?’ she gasps. ‘Are you teasing me?’

‘Nope.’ I pop the p for emphasis. ‘I’m such a dick.’ I can’t stop my chest shaking with laughter.‘I’ve spent days trying to work out how to explain to you how I feel, and there it just went and slipped out, no stress, no big monologue.’ Pulling her towards me, I rub my nose against hers. ‘Just wish I’d told you sooner.’

‘I think I love you too.’ Her blush infuses her pale skin in seconds.

Lifting her off the ground I spin her round and she giggles. Cliché but I don’t fucking care.

‘You know,’ I venture slowly, ‘we should look at this littleblipas a good thing.’

‘We should?’ She cocks an eyebrow.

Nodding, I admit, ‘It helped me recognise my feelings. Who knows how long it’d have taken me to work this out otherwise. So definitely no need to apologise.’

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