Love Online(73)

I immediately purchased a thousand coins and dumped them into the pot to request a private chat.

Eden’s hands were shaking as she covered her mouth.

Her voice trembled. “I’ll be right back, everyone.”





CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT




* * *





EDEN




What the what?

I couldn’t switch over to the private chat room fast enough. My entire body was trembling.

When Ryder’s gorgeous face lit up my screen, the look in his eyes matched the beautiful sentiments he’d just typed.

I couldn’t wait to say the words. “I love you, too. Oh my God, Ryder. I love you so much.”

“I love you,” he said again. “I love you. I love you. I love you. I’ll never be able to say it enough.”

“Say it again.”

His eyes were glistening. “I love you, Eden Shortsleeve.”

I wiped tears from my eyes. “You really shocked me tonight.”

“Mallory told me what she said to you at the wake, and now I realize that’s what’s been bothering you. You’ve been holding your breath, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I also realize now that you had no reason to have confidence in me, because I never gave you a solid reason to believe in my feelings for you.”

I had to know. “What happened with her tonight?”

“She came by and told me she wanted me back, that she loved me—everything you were expecting. I felt almost nothing while she was pouring her soul out to me. I was numb, and that’s because every inch of my heart is filled with you. It’s been slowly filling up from the moment I laid eyes on you.”

I started to cry harder.

“Are you okay?”

I sniffled. “Yes. I’m just really happy.”

“I know your mind is probably going a mile a minute, still wondering how we’re gonna make this work. But we will make this work. When something is worth fighting for, you don’t wait around to figure out logistics. You say yes, you accept the gift you’ve been given, and you figure out the rest later, because life is too damn short to be unhappy.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying, fuck the job, fuck everything else—I want to be with you. That’s my priority. And I want to be a part of Ollie’s life, too. Not just from a distance, but every day. And not just as a friend but as family. Because that’s how I feel about you—both of you. You’re my family, the only family I have.”

I wiped my eyes again, overwhelmed with emotion. Then I started to laugh as the reality of what he was saying set in. “What? You’re gonna move into my tiny house?”

“Yeah, maybe. Fuck it. That’s for the three of us to figure out. It won’t happen overnight. But in the meantime, I’ll come visit more often, and the goal will be deciding where we’ll settle, whether that’s L.A. or St. George. Maybe both. I know you don’t want Ollie to leave his school. We’ll figure it out, even if I have to commute every weekend for a while or indefinitely—that would be worth it. There is nothing that matters more to me than you, Eden. Nothing.”

I felt like I could finally exhale. Looking up at the ceiling, I said a silent prayer to my mother, thanking her in case she had something to do with this.

Thank you.

“I can’t believe you were AssLover all along. I can’t even be mad at you for that.”

“I had a lot of fun with it.”

“Oh, I know. I was there!”

***

We’d decided we weren’t going to say anything to Ollie about Ryder’s upcoming visit. This one was going to be particularly epic because Ryder and I planned to tell Ollie about our commitment to each other.

Ollie and I were hanging around the house after dinner. I knew Ryder was set to arrive any minute, so I was feeling very antsy.

At one point, I noticed Ollie carrying a large pile of towels into the laundry room. Had he been hoarding towels? That was odd. He never took care of his own laundry. While perplexing, it made me happy to think he was taking some initiative around the house.

My heart jumped for joy when Ryder texted me that he was outside.

Ollie had returned to his room, so I quietly opened the front door and leapt into Ryder’s arms.

His kiss felt warmer, more intense than ever, and I knew that was because for the first time I was tasting the man I knew truly belonged to me.

“How was your flight?” I whispered.

“Too long. I couldn’t wait to get here.” He looked beyond my shoulder. “Where’s Ollie?”

“In his room.”

When he arrived at Ollie’s bedroom door, Ryder started to make his cricket sound.

Ollie jumped. “No way!”

“Hey, buddy.” Ryder embraced him.

“You didn’t tell me you were coming!”

“That was the whole point—to surprise you.”

It warmed my heart to see the look on Ollie’s face as they hugged. He was so at peace whenever Ryder was around.

“How long can you stay?”

“How long do you want me to stay?” Ryder asked.

“Is that a trick question?”

He laughed. “What if it wasn’t?”