Page 97 of Fall With Me
After a moment of Dawson doing something I can’t see, he puts a plate in front of me. The dish is made of chips, crumbled meat, eggs, and cheese.
“Voilà,” Dawson says. “Breakfast nachos. We have eggs and tortilla chips for yellow. Avocado, lime, and cilantro for green. Salsa for red. Brown and white aren’t technically part of the rainbow, but at least I got a few more colors in here. And…” he pulls a glass bottle of root beer from behind his back, “a little something to represent Finn.”
I’ve never had breakfast nachos before, but based on the smell alone, I’m going to have a new favorite. And holy moly, Dawson did this for me? And he used my rainbow method? Plus gave me something to remind me of Finn? Tears pool in my eyes. I sniffle. I’m probably reading into this, but I really hope this means what I think it does. “I won the bet?”
“Since you did most of the festival on your own, yeah, you did. But for the record, I never agreed to it in the first place. This is more of a peace offering. The first time we mixed Finn, root beer, and nachos was a big disaster. I’m kind of hoping we can reset. That this isn’t game over for us.”
The entire reason we had the festival last night is because it was a bye week for the Utes. I didn’t get my beloved nachos. But Dawson found a way to get me my favorite food with a fun twist. This man has my heart. I take a bite, immediately moaning when the flavors hit my taste buds. Okay, I adore traditional nachos, but this is a ridiculous close second. The sausage mixed with the creaminess of the cheese, avocado, and sour cream, and then the crunch of the chip—it’s pure deliciousness. I’m adding this recipe to myrepertoire. I take another bite, savoring the flavors blending perfectly.
“One more thing.” Dawson pulls out a box wrapped in pink paper, handing it to me.
I eye Dawson. He already got me nachos. What else is in here? Tearing open the package, I find an Adidas shoe box. Lifting the flap, a pair of red shoes rests inside. They’re exactly like the pair I had on at the opening Utah football game. Meeting his gaze again, I whisper, “Thank you.”
Seriously this man is the sweetest, most thoughtful human. Tears flood my eyes.
“Dawson—”
“Chlo—”
We say at the same time.
An awkward chuckle bubbles out of me. “Go ahead.”
Dawson comes around the island, sitting next to me. He takes my hand in his, running his thumb over my fingers. “I’m so sorry, 007. I overreacted when I met you at the doctor’s office the day Finn got hurt. My meeting with Carter didn’t go great. When Kate told me where you were and what had happened to Finn, the pressure and insecurity of not doing enough crushed me and I took it out on you. I know you would never purposely hurt Finn. I’m sorry I pushed you away. I have this habit of thinking I have to do everything on my own…especially when it comes to Finn. When things got tough, instead of relying on you for help, I thought our lives would be easier without you in the picture.”
He shakes his head. “Clearly, I made a mistake. We’re miserable without you, 007.I’mmiserable. I can’t concentrate on anything. My patience with Finn is gone. I miss youso much it physically hurts. Can you forgive me and give us another chance?”
I’m flabbergasted he thinks this is entirely his fault. That I didn’t have anything to do with our breakup. “My answer is yes, as long as you can forgive me too. I took Finn’s accident as me repeating my mom’s mistakes and decided I wasn’t worthy to have you and Finn in my life because I wasn’t a perfect adult. That you both were better off without me. So I left you alone. But turns out, like you, I’m miserable too. Missing out on our sleepover, trick-or-treating together, and spending every night with one another sent me to a really dark place. Seeing you last night, us working together… Dawson, I’m better with you than I am without. And I don’t want to live a life where you’re not by my side because it’s not a life at all. It’s torture.”
He sighs, pulling me into him for a hug. “Oh, thank goodness.”
I rest the side of my face on his shoulder, inhaling his fresh, clean scent. Warmth seeps into me like a bag of tea in hot water. How did I ever think I could live without this? “I’m sorry, Dawson. Next time, I’ll do my best to talk through my issues instead of staying away.”
“And I will trust you and not push you out of our lives.”
I know we won’t be perfect at these promises. Our pasts won’t be easy to move on from, but I’m grateful we’re in a place where we can acknowledge what went wrong and do our best to work as a team to move forward. “What time are you picking Finn up from your parents?”
Dawson pulls back. “Is this your subtle way of asking how much time we have to make out, 007?”
I bark out a laugh. “Not a bad idea, Smokey, but no. I was thinking the three of us could have dinner and watch a movie or play games together. As much as I want to be alone with you, I want to reassure Finn I’m his friend too.”
“And this is a huge part of why I love you. Your concern and affection for Finn is more than I could have ever hoped for.”
My jaw drops, my heart goes as gooey as frosting on a cinnamon roll, and more tears flood my eyes. “Did you just say what I think you said?”
He smiles, further melting me. “I absolutely did.”
Taking his face between my palms, I pull his face to mine, pressing my lips against his. “I love you too,” I say, mumbling against his mouth. “You are my everything.”
Dawson squeezes me tighter. Warmth spreads from my lips to my heart to my toes and everywhere in between.
It’s like we’re standing in a grove of massive trees and a huge breeze comes through, shaking loose a million autumn leaves. My heart sings and dances just like the leaves. I part my lips for Dawson, letting him take the lead on our kiss.
I love this man.
I love his goodness, kindness, loyalty, forgiveness, listening skills, festival planning abilities, hugs, and more importantly? How he makes me feel—loved and wanted as I am. He’s sweet and one hundred percent everything I need.
I kiss Dawson with every morsel of love I have for him.
