Page 168 of After All This Time

Those first weeks without her? Pure hell. Her empty room became this black hole, sucking the air from my lungs every time I passed it. But over time, I started to adapt. I found a strange sort of peace in the solitude I'd spent my whole life avoiding. Some days, I even convinced myself I was getting good at it. Other days, though, the restlessness would settle in, and that’s when Amelia would hear from me. Whether or not she was busy didn't matter to either of us. Because even if I’d learned to survive the silence, it’s her voice that keeps me steady.

Life can be a royal bitch when it comes to teaching us its lessons.

People leave. But my girl? She comes back. She always finds her way home to me.

The dining room feels different tonight—fuller—like the missing piece of a puzzle finally sliding home. The only people missing are Jen and Harry.

"So how was it? The tour? Did it go well?" Tessa asks, leaning forward, her curiosity genuine as always.

Amelia swallows a bite of spaghetti and nods. "It was a good experience, but I’m not rushing to do it again."

"Will you have to?"

"It’ll probably be expected if I stay with this company," she says, her voice steady but hesitant. "Which wasn’t a problem before…" Her gaze drifts to me, and I reach across the table to take her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"We'll handle it if you tour again," I tell her, meaning it with everything in me. Even if the thought of watching her walk away again feels like swallowing broken glass.

"What’s stopping you from going with her?" Zane asks, his tone casual, but the question lands with weight. "I get youcouldn’t just leave your job before, but you’ve wanted to go out on your own, right? Why not use that as an opportunity?"

"Like a traveling tattooist?" I laugh, but Zane doesn’t. He’s dead serious.

"Is it doable? I mean, social media isn’t my thing, but surely you’ve got enough exposure to pull it off. Share your work… build a following."

"Or," Tessa jumps in, "you could check Amelia's schedule, then call around different tattoo studios in each city. See if they'd take on a guest artist while you're there."

I lean back, staring at them both. "Look at you two with all the ideas, huh?" But the truth is, I love the sound of them.

Amelia laughs, shaking her head. "You want to follow me around the country?”

When I meet her eyes, everything else fades away. "You kidding me? I’d follow you anywhere, Firefly."

Zane's low chuckle breaks the moment as he drops a kiss on Tessa's temple. "Said the same thing to you, didn’t I, sweetheart?"

"Pretty much." Tessa’s smile is warm, her hand resting on Zane’s arm.

Watching them, knowing what it feels like to love someone that deeply, hits differently now and just makes me even happier for both of them. They’ve got something rare, and now I know how it feels to have it too.

"You trying to get rid of me, Blondie?" I tease Tessa, lightening the moment.

"We've got a few months before the next tour," Amelia reminds us, grinning. "Plenty of time for you to annoy them both."

"Oh, you'll be here too," Tessa fires back. "This’ll go from sad, lonely man at our table to couples’ night every week. I’ll invite Harry and Jen too."

My chest aches in the best way when I see Amelia's whole face light up at the inclusion—as if she can't quite believe she belongs here.

"Oh, we’ve got Zane’s brother’s wedding next month," Tessa adds. "So we’ll have to cancel one week."

For a brief second, my eyes lock with Zane’s, and I catch the subtle curve of his smile. He doesn’t need to say anything. I've seen the ring—the one he bought almost a year ago—and I gotta admit, the guy nailed it. Tessa’s going to love it.

Watching them, I can see my future clear as day. Because one day, that'll be Amelia and me. Not a question of if, just when. Because this girl? She's it for me.

Epilogue

Four years later

Tobias

AMELIA

---