Page 103 of Bumping into You

“Niall, I’m so sorry,” I manage to say on a sob, as more tears begin to fall.

“Oh,mo ghrá, so am I. More than I could ever describe.” He pulls me into a soul-crushing hug. I feel the hug throughout my entire body. Fifty years from now, I will remember this hug, the way it feels to be held by him.

“You two know each other then?” Clyde asks.

“You could say that.” Niall laughs. “If you could give us a minute, please?” Clyde nods and gets back in the car.

“Look,” says Niall, pulling back from me slightly. “I should have told you about the favor I agreed to do for Greg. It was daft of me to keep it to myself.”

“I was just so hurt and confused that you didn’t tell me about the pact you made with Greg. And it made me think that you were just spending time with me because he asked you to, not that you really wanted to be with me. I was afraid you didn’t really like me for me. And I was scared you’d want me to change, be someone else.”

“Gwen, that’s just not true. From the first moment we’d met,there was something about you that called to me, and I wanted to get to know you more, so when Greg asked me, I went along with it. I was happy he was, in a way, giving me his stamp of approval. I was hoping it would keep Greg from acting like an overly protective, angry older brother if things between us went somewhere. And I really wanted them to go somewhere.”

“You did?”

“Of course I did. Why else would I agree to fake date you if I didn’t already want to date you in the first place?”

More tears stream down my face, and I wrap my arms around Niall.

“Though I was totally wrong about Greg’s reaction,” Niall says, shaking his head. “He was not thrilled when he found out I was being more than friendly with you.”

“Overprotection and hot-headedness do seem to be a family trait of ours,” I say, then laugh.

“I’m so sorry for lying to you,” says Niall, “and I promise to never knowingly do so again. But as for making daft decisions, I’m sure I’ll make plenty of those in the future. But hopefully you can be patient with me. Maybe even give me a second chance? That’s why I’m here. I had to give this one more shot. A life without you isn’t a life at all.”

“I was coming to you,” I say, “to ask you to givemea second chance. I’m so sorry I let my emotions and fears get the best of me and that I didn’t give you a chance to explain. I can’t promise that won’t happen again, but I can promise that I will work on hearing you out. I just need you to be patient with me while I work on it.”

“Were you really going to fly up to Boston to see me?” he asks.

“Yes, but seems like you beat me to it by coming here.” I chuckle lightly.

“Gwendolyn, even though we’ve only known each other for a few weeks, and some of those days we’ve spent apart—by theway, those were some of the worst days of my life—” he admits, “I’ve been a shell of myself without you. I’ve felt empty and so lost. Because I want us to give this a real chance. I realized I was falling for you. No,” he stops himself.

“No?” I ask.

“Correction, I was not falling for you. I have fallen for you. To be more specific, I’ve fallen in love with you.”

“Oh,” I say timidly, letting out a small hiccup sob.

“Being without you made me feel like I had lost a part of myself. You make me happy. You make me whole. I don’t ever want to lose you again.”

And then his mouth is on mine, not soft, but fierce. A kiss filled with a desperate longing from both of us.

We pull apart to take a breath, and he leans his forehead against mine. “I want to be with you, Gwendolyn. I don’t want to be apart from you ever again.”

Nodding, I say, “I would love nothing more. I love you, Niall.”

TEN MONTHS

Later . . .

Epilogue

Niall

After a whirlwind ten months, I’ve finally moved the last of my things to Tennessee. It was an easy decision to move. While leaving my crew at the firehouse was difficult, a spot opened up for a lieutenant in Chessie Valley, and having passed my lieutenant exam, I was able to get the position. The crew at the Chessie Valley firehouse welcomed me with open arms.

Gwen and I decided not to sell my house in Boston but to fix it up and rent it out for part of the year. It took us a little more time than anticipated to renovate it, but now it will not only remind me of my mam but also be a home to Gwen and me when we spend a few weeks there during the summers or holidays. Boston will always be home to me and have a place in my heart. It’s where I grew up and where the memories of my mam are the strongest.

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