Page 110 of How You See Me
Her scowl releases. “Oh,” she says, but doesn’t press for more information. She watches the passing scenery for a while, her arms unmoving from her middle. Then, she reaches for my hand. “If you’re doing it for Ava, I will, too.”
This woman.
She doesn’t even know what that means yet. Doesn’t ask. Just chooses to stand beside me and my family, no questions asked.
And in that moment, it’s not a gradual fall anymore.
That brave declaration is all it takes for me to freefall in love with her.
Chapter 24
Josie
Imight have panicked—just a little—when Hayes first mentioned the hot air balloon ride. It’s my default reaction to anything that dangles even a toe outside my comfort zone. But standing here now, beneath a towering balloon painted with sunrise colors, its silky canopy billowing with the wind, I can’t bring myself to hold onto the fear. It’s too breathtaking, too magical, to let anxiety win.
I need to do this—not just to conquer my fear, but to prove that I’m still me despite it. I’m still growing, and I can be brave. That Iambrave.
I need to do this for me. For Hayes. For Ava.
“Ready?” he asks, his voice coated with that calm confidence I’ve come to rely on more than I should.
My heart takes off.
Needing his comforting touch, I reach for his hand and tap my chest with the other.
He does the same, and for a minute, we breathe together.
“Ready.” My answer comes with zero hesitation or second-guessing. Not about this. Not about him.
We climb into the basket, and the burner flares with a roar, lifting us skyward. Instinctively, I press into Hayes. Every inch of me craves his warmth, his steady presence. His arms wrap around me, and I rest my cheek against his chest, listening to the rhythmic beat of his heart. It’s strong. A quiet reassurance, making me feel safe in a world that’s anything but.
Little by little, an exhilarating weightlessness replaces the tension. The world below begins to shrink, and I realize I’m not clinging to him anymore. I’m relaxed and unchained from my fears.
I’m not worrying or doubting my decision. Just taking in the beauty of this moment, the joy Hayes brings, and the quiet certainty that I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.
As we rise higher into the morning sky, the scenery unfolds in the distance like a living painting. Albuquerque stretches in every direction—a breathtaking mix of rugged, sunburnt mesas, a sparkling river, and a city bathed in light.
All around us, other balloons drift like bright ornaments hung from invisible strings—splashes of color dotting the endless blue sky.
From behind me, Hayes rests his hands on the basket rim, caging me in. I lean back to take in the view with him,but he’s looking at me instead. The sky lives in his eyes but so does something deeper. Something unspoken, real, and too overwhelming to ignore.
I shift to face him, my heart pounding—not from nerves, but from everything he’s becoming to me. “It feels like we’re floating through a painting.”
He tucks my hair behind my ear, his thumb tracing my cheek. “I was thinking the same thing. One you’ve touched and perfected.”
He kisses me, and I float even higher, letting go of the last remnants of my heart.
???
For the rest of the ride to our landing spot, I capture every breathtaking moment with my camera—the endless sky, the floating colors around us, the way the sun highlights the copper tones in Hayes’ hair.
He takes a few pictures too, sending some off to Ava. He even asks another passenger to snap some of us together. Our first real photo together, and I’m glad it happened up here. I’d already taken a few selfies, capturing him in the background, but it doesn’t mean the same as him proudly standing next to me, his arm tugging me close for all the world to see.
His phone soon buzzes, and he glances at the screen, a smile lightening his features as he reads the message.
“From Ava?”
He nods. “She says you’re beautiful.”
