Page 126 of Beauty Beneath the Sorrow
“Yes, you do, baby. There’s beauty beneath the sorrow, and you don’t have to live with this pain forever.” Carter puts a comforting hand on my cheek. “Be with me.”
Everything I want, everything I’ve hoped for—everything I never thought I’d get, is standing in front of me. Heavily breathing, I can barely form words.
Carter clears his throat, and his voice cracks when he speaks, “You are my endgame. There is nothing else in this life I want more than you.”
I rub my lips together, staring into the endless pools of his eyes while he speaks. “Oh, Carter.”
“Be. With. Me,” he repeats, drawing out each word in a gentle beg.
Trembling, I open my mouth to speak as a salty tear rolls across the seam of my lips. “Okay.”
His eyebrows knit. “Yeah?”
Nodding vigorously, I give him an answer with my whole heart. No second thoughts, no fear. “Yes.”
Carter’s chest rises as he takes in a sharp breath. He smiles, but before he can speak, I capture his mouth with mine. Everything goes silent around me. I know the passengers are cheering for us, but nothing is audible.
“I love you so fucking much,” I murmur into his lips. Carter is the only thing that exists in my world.
He breaks our kiss to rest his forehead against mine. “I breathe for you, Lina. I have since the moment I saw you.”
“How did you know I’d be on this flight?” I ask, closing my eyes and letting myself live in this moment. “And how did you know about the pilot’s school?”
“I called in a favor.” The side of his mouth quirks up. “For both.”
I’m not even surprised.
As the passengers deplane, we’re peppered with compliments, well wishes, and kind words. Bailey and Avery insisted I cancel plans with them tonight and spend it with Carter—which was what I planned to do anyway. They fought over who was going to call Piper to give her an update about what happened. We ended up quickly Facetiming.
Carter drops the luggage in the entryway of our hotel room.
Swinging my arms around his neck, I stare into his eyes. “I need to tell you something.”
He cocks his head to the side with a slightly worried look on his face. “Yeah?”
“I’m sorry,” I tell him, then take a few steps back, preparing myself to unload everything that has been on my mind the last few days. “You are my person, Carter Hernandez, and I’m sorry it took me so long to realize it.” He opens his mouth to speak, but I rest a finger on his lips, hushing him. “I need to get this out.” With a smile, he nods. “You are more important to me than anyone ever has been. I have let something that happened to me when I was young control my life for far too long, and I’m not letting it any longer.”
Carter’s arm snakes underneath my hair before his fingers comb through it. “I know it was tough, and I’m so sorry you had to go through it. I’m sorry that Brian wasn’t around for you growing up, and now you’re worried I’ll leave you for the same life he left you for, but that isn’t going to happen. I am a man, and I know what I want. And what I want is you. Nothing isgoing to keep me from you, Lina.”
The muscles in my stomach tighten. “I trust you. I trust us. And I know I will be safe with you.”
“We’re going to be us forever. And I’m staying in Phoenix,” he states, bringing his lips down to mine in a deep and passionate kiss.
I barely pull back enough space to rub my nose against his. “Can forever start right now?”
Fuck all my trauma, my issues with my parents, and my insecurities. Nothing is going to prevent me from giving myself to this man any longer.
I deserve my happy beginning, too.
Epilogue
Carter
Six Months Later
“Ihear plane engines,” Lina comments, tightly gripping my hand. She fought the blindfold the entire time, but I told her we weren’t going unless she put it on. After a mild tantrum, huffing and puffing a few times, she finally let me put it over her eyes.
Lina and I are in the process of buying a house, and with her working so much and starting the pilot’s academy in a few weeks, I wanted us to get away together for a while.
