Page 53 of Raven

He looked at me, his smile fading into something quieter. “When I got that call… when your brothers said you were missing, I swear—Bea, I’ve been in warzones that felt less terrifying. I heard in their voice how scared they were. I don’t want to ever be that scared again.”

My throat tightened. “I kept thinking about you when I was out there… on that branch. I wanted to hold on for you,” I said, leaning on his shoulder.

He looked down at our hands, his fingers tracing the edge of mine.

“You don’t have to hold on alone anymore,” he said. “Never.”

I turned to him. His eyes, God, those eyes, they were steady, fierce, and full of something I hadn’t dared to name until now.

Love.

“Raven…”

He reached out and brushed a strand of hair from my cheek, his touch featherlight.

“I know this isn’t how it was supposed to go,” he said. “But I’m done pretending I don’t care. You’re it for me, Bea. I love you.”

Tears welled in my eyes, but I smiled.

“You’re it for me, too.”

He leaned in slowly, carefully—his forehead resting against mine.

“You sure?” He whispered.

“I’ve never been more sure. I love you. I was so scared that I would never be able to tell you again that I loved you.”

Then he kissed me—soft, reverent, and full of every promise we hadn’t spoken until now.

And for the first time since everything fell apart, I felt whole.

“This is perfect,” I said as he kissed me again.

28

Beatrice

Raven movedme into his house, packed my clothes, and put them in his room.

I still wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but I agreed—for now.

I didn’t want him waiting on me hand and foot, but I didn’t want him far from me either.

We were eating outside when people suddenly surrounded us.

I knew who they were without an introduction. Raven had their photos everywhere—his family—his beautiful, big family.

They paused when they saw me, then grinned. The men looked just like Raven.

I stood as they stepped forward to hug me gently, carefully, and kindly. Raven must have told them about my injuries.

His dad smiled at me. I still couldn’t get over how young he was—just sixteen when Raven was born.

Raven had told me the story of his family and how DNA testing helped him find even more relatives.

“How are you doing?” his dad asked.

“I’m doing well. I’ll be returning to work in a few weeks.”

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