Page 92 of Walkoff Wedding

I swallow down the tight ball of emotion in my throat before I speak. “It’s what I’m going to turn in for my art thesis portfolio. You… You were the only thing I could draw. I started over so many times because nothing ever felt right. I was so frustrated with myself, with my abilities, but then I met you, and… everything just kind of clicked into place. It was like drawing something I’d done a hundred times. It felt like I was drawing from my heart.”

The words tumble out of me in a rush, and for the first time, I’m thankful for my nervous rambling because I’m not sure I would’ve ever had the courage to say any of that out loud otherwise.

Emotion, strong like a current, flows through the deep blue of his irises, and his throat bobs. “It’s the best gift I’ve ever received, Addie.” His words are laced with fierce sincerity, and it makes my chest ache.

The canvas he’s holding is a sketch of him from the night that we sat under the stars and talked about how big the universe was. It wasn’t that long ago, but so much has changed since then, and I was worried that drawing him as my subject would be… too much. But truthfully, Grant’s the only thing that feels right anymore. A feeling that’s both terrifying and comforting at the same time.

He sets the canvas on the counter and turns toward me, his hands finding my hips and tugging me to him before he wraps his arms tightly around my waist. He’s holding me like I’m going to break apart in his hands, and it causes my chest to physically ache. The expression on his face is unreadable, his jaw set in a line as his eyes flick between mine, searching.

“I love you, Addie,” he murmurs softly.

“Grant…” His name slips from my lips in a breathless whisper. My heart is thudding so hard in my chest that it feels hard to breathe. I desperately pull in a breath as he continues talking.

“I’m in love with you, and I’ve wanted to tell you that for weeks, but I wanted everything to be perfect. I wanted the timing to be right and the date I was planning to be something you’d never forget. Because you deserve that, and I want to be the guy that gives you everything. But, Addie, I couldn’t wait another second to tell you that I’m in love with you. And that this marriage isn’t fake for me. Not anymore. It’s the most real thing I’ve ever felt.”

My cheeks are wet with tears when he finishes, and I have a hundred different things that I want to say. But I physically can’t stop myself as I throw my arms around his neck, a choked sob escaping against his mouth as I press my lips against his. After a beat of salty, tear-filled kisses, I tear my lips away and say, “I love you too. Just in case you didn’t understand what that meant.”

Grant chuckles, his breath fanning over my tearstained cheeks as he brings his hand to my face and cradles it in his palm, gently sweeping his thumb to dry them. “I was hoping that’s what you meant, but I wasn’t sure…”

His voice is light and teasing, and I laugh through a happy sob. “I was afraid to tell you how I felt because I was scared that you wouldn’t feel the same way. Our marriage was supposed to be an arrangement, and I didn’t want to make things weird between us if I was the only one who had these feelings. I thought maybe that you did, but this entire arrangement was built around pretending. I thought you were just playing the part,” I whisper.

He shakes his head as he strokes my cheek, the expression on his face turning soft. “Baby, I’m fucking crazy about you. It hasn’t been pretend for me in a long time—honestly, I’m not sure if it ever was. When I kissed you for the first time at that altar, I think a part of me knew, right then and there, that there was no turning back. That there would never be anyone besides you, Addie.”

“It’s real for me too. All of it, Grant,” I murmur softly against his lips. “I… I want to be yours. Really yours.”

God, I can’t even believe this is happening right now and that I’m saying those words out loud.

“You’ve always been mine, Addie. Even before you realized it.” His voice is low and full of conviction.

I think back to when we only knew each other through a computer screen, how I used to only allow myself a moment, brief and fleeting, to imagine what it would be like to be his. But I knew that my life was too much of a mess, and feared that if we ever really met, a guy like him wouldn’t want a girl like me. I thought it would never be anything other than me wishing that my life was different.

Except, all this time later, Grant Bergeron loves me.

We said we would leave things to fate. And by whatever strings that control the universe, we somehow ended up together.

“I’ve wanted to be yours for longer than you even know, Jockboy,” I say, my eyes dropping to his lips before I lift on the tips of my toes and brush my lips against his. I feel more brazen than I’ve ever felt, and I think it’s because I’m comfortable with him like no one else. “Will you… take me to bed?”

chapter twenty-six

Addie

Grant lifts me off my feet at the same time that I wrap my legs around his waist, and he carries me toward the bedroom without ever breaking our kiss. It feels different somehow, charged in a way that it’s never felt like before. and maybe that’s because now we both know that this isn’t fake. That the way we feel is real. And that changes everything.

It feels surreal, that as much of a mess my life has been, it led me here. To him.

He walks us into the bedroom, pushing the door shut with his foot, then tearing his lips away from my lips, trailing hot, open-mouthed kisses along my jaw, down to the sensitive column of my neck.

My head feels dizzy, and my pulse races. The feeling of his lips searing along my skin has my toes curling and my fingers sliding to tug at the short hair at his nape. Everything feels on fire, a tangible burn that continues to ignite with each press of his lips and drag of his tongue along my heated skin.

A whimper falls from my lips, and he lifts his head, his eyes connecting with mine. The hunger blazing inside of them gives me confidence I never thought I could possess. It gives me the boldness to show him just how much I love him and how safe I feel with him.

How much I trust him to take care of me. When there’s never been anyone in my life that I could trust this way.

I unwrap my legs carefully from around his waist, sliding down every inch of his hard, unyielding body until my feet touch the hardwood. Pulling in a deep, shaky breath, I take two steps back and gaze up at him, holding his eyes as I reach for the hem of my dress and pull it over my head.

The matching bra and panties that I ordered probably aren’t very sexy… it’s not like I have a lot of experience in the matter, but I know that Grant loves it when I wear blue. The lace set hugs my curves and flatters my figure.

Clearly, my husband likes it because there’s an audible hiss that fills the room when the dress hits the floor, and I drag my gaze back to his. I watch as his throat bobs, his expression a mixture of hunger and reverence.

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