by Brooks, Abby
James pulled himself up into the driver’s seat and closed the door gently, careful not to rock the truck and cause her pain. “I bet you’re ready to get home.” He turned the keys in the ignition and the engine came to life.
She wasn’t at all ready to see her apartment again. Wasn’t at all ready to go back to surviving instead of living. Ellie shrugged and then groaned, the movement hurting her arms.
“James?”
He turned to her, a question on his face.
“What now?”
He refocused on the road and swallowed. “We get you home and into bed. Get you set up with the things you need. And you rest until you’re healed.”
“That’s not what I meant. What about us?” Anxiety fluttered in her stomach and she leaned her head back against the headrest, the movement of the truck making her dizzy after so much time spent lying still in bed.
“I think that’s pretty obvious. Don’t you?”
“Clearly, I’m still feeling a little unsure or I wouldn’t ask.”
James sighed and kept his eyes on the road. “I love you, Ellie Charles. When you ran away from me at Ian’s house, when that door slammed between us, I knew without a doubt that I couldn’t face my life without you. And then, when I watched your car flip down the road, and I thought that I’d wasted my last moments with you by yelling and being childish, my whole … I don’t know ... my entire being rejected the idea.” He turned to her, his eyes wide and misty with unshed tears. “I am yours, and you are mine, and I will cherish every last minute with you as if it were truly the last time I’ll see you.”
A surge of emotion so powerful she couldn’t name it stole Ellie’s voice. She swallowed hard and smiled at James, as the tears in her eyes made him wobble and glimmer. “And the baby?” she finally choked out.
“Yes, and the baby.” He smiled as if that clarified everything.
“What does that mean? I need you to be clear because I need to be sure. I can’t live in vague spaces right now. I can’t handle wondering, not knowing. I need you to tell me exactly what you mean so I don’t have that little tiny voice in my head telling me I’m an idiot for believing in the fairy tale.”
“What fairy tale?”
“The one where you swoop into my life and give me everything I need. The one where I used to be scared and alone and barely able to take care of myself and then you show up and rescue me. The one where I love you and you love me and we get to live happily ever after. A family.” Her throat constricted on the rest of her words. Her need for the fairy tale too powerful to contain.
“If this is a fairy tale, then welcome to your happily ever after.” James slowed the truck and turned on his turn signal and Ellie realized that he wasn’t turning into the parking lot of her apartment complex. The broad expanse of his driveway stretched out before her. The windows of his house glittered in the early morning sun while the ocean reached out to meet the sky.
James pulled up to the house and turned off the truck, twisted in his seat to place a gentle hand on her cheek. “Welcome home, sweet Ellie,” he said, and then kissed her lips, claiming her for his own.
* * *
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