Falling for the Groomsman (Wedding Dare, #1)(54)



He shook his head. “I know, but that’s why I ran away.” He let go of her and dragged his hand down his face, knowing he was f*cking this up. “I knew we could be something serious. I was young, and I was due to leave the country in a few days. But I’m not that boy anymore. There’s so much I have to tell you. So much to say.”

She bit down hard on her lip and remained silent, nodding.

“I was scared back then, but I’m not scared now.” He blew out a breath. “Okay, that’s a lie. I’m terrified. Terrified of not being enough for you. But even more so, I’m terrified of losing you. I’ve spent a long time trying to deny the fact that we belong together. I spent a hell of a lot of years running from the way you made me feel that night, thinking that it was for the best, but I refuse to run away again. From now on, I’ll run with you, not away from you. If you feel the same way about me, all you have to do is say the word.”

“Tyler,” she whispered, her voice cracking. She reached out and pressed her hand to his cheek. “Yes. I feel the same way.”

Relief, joy, and hope crashed through him and he kissed her hard. She tried to wrap her arms around him and pull him closer, but he ended the kiss before she got too close. There was more he had to say. He wasn’t done yet. “Wait. There’s more.”

She blinked up at him. “There is?”

“You’re moving.”

Her smile faded. “I know. But we can—”

“Shh.” He placed his finger on her mouth and smiled down at her. “There’s a lot of things we can do, but there’s only one thing I want to do, and it’s not open for discussion. I’m moving to Maine with you as soon as I can possibly manage it—just like I’d planned to move to Denver.”

Her eyes went wide. “What? No. You can’t. You just took that job, and Kady is out here. Your parents—no one else is on the East Coast.”

“But you’ll be there.”

She bit her lip. “Tyler…”

His heart twisted. Did she not want him there? Was he moving too fast? Probably, but he didn’t care. He’d spent the last eight years missing out on time he could have spent with her by his side—he didn’t want to spend another second in that state ever again.

But if she wasn’t ready…

“Why are you hesitant? Is it because you think it’s too much to ask of me?” he asked, his voice cracking despite his best attempt to keep it even. “Or I can’t because you don’t want me to be with you? Which is it?”

“I want to be with you. I do.” She cradled his face in her hands and kissed him before pulling back from him. “But you just got that job, which you took after you gave up your other new job to be with me. It’s absolutely asking too much of you.”

“Exactly. I took the job to be with you,” he said. “If you’re not there? Well, it loses its appeal.” He met her eyes again. “I already politely declined the job in Denver, after explaining the situation. Turns out they have a sister hospital out in Maine, and they’re looking for a new ER doctor, too.”

She blinked up at him. “And they want you?”

“Of course they do,” he said, grinning. “Why wouldn’t they? I’m an excellent catch.”

She laughed and swatted at him. “I know that.”

“But the question is…do you want me? Because, Red? I know I should have said this years ago, and I’m an idiot for not doing it already, but I love you.” He kissed her gently, making sure not to press too close. There was too much left unsaid. “I love you, and I don’t want to make the same mistakes I’ve made in the past. I know you’ll need time to trust me before you could maybe love me, too, but I’m willing to wait. I’ll wait forever if I have to. I swear it.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled at him. “You don’t have to wait. I already love you, you silly man.”

He froze. “You do?”

“I do, and I have since Mexico. I just didn’t know it.”

He didn’t move. Didn’t blink. Barely dared to breathe, in case he woke up and found out this was all a dream or some shit like that. “So can I move to Maine with you?”

She let out a happy laugh and nodded. “Yes. If you really want to, then oh my God, yes.” She leaned in and tried to kiss him, but he pressed his fingers to her lips again. She sighed in exasperation, but the happiness in her eyes told him she wasn’t that annoyed. “What now?”

“I’ll move there with you on one condition.”

Her brow furrowed. “Okay?”

“We live apart from each other.” He smoothed her hair back. “You need to try out that independence thing for a little while first, and I refuse to mess that up. When we’re both ready, we’ll move in together. Deal?”

She nodded and smiled up at him, tears swimming in her eyes. “Deal.”

This time when she kissed him, he didn’t stop her. Her mouth melded to his perfectly, and she pressed the entire length of her body against his. He groaned and walked her backward to the bed. When the back of her knees hit the mattress, he pushed her back on it. He landed on top of her, pulling back far enough that he could look into her eyes, but not so far that he had to let go.

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