Page 30 of The Hotshot's Prize
His face softens. “I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I wanted to find you the second I woke up, but the medics wouldn’t even let me stand, let alone go chasing after a girl I barely know but can’t stop thinking about.”
My heart jumps in excitement at his words.
“In that fire, when I thought it was over…all I wanted was to see you again. To tell you how I feel.”
I reach up, brushing a lock of hair off his brow, eyes scanning the cut above his eye. “You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”
I let my fingers trace over his good hand, the one still holding the crumpled bouquet like he couldn’t bear to show up without something in his hands. He leans into my touch like it’s the only thing anchoring him.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” I ask, quieter this time.
He nods. “Physically? Yeah. I’ll be back on my feet in no time.” Then his voice drops, eyes burning into mine. “The only thing I’m not walking away from is you.”
My breath catches.
“I don’t want to lose you, Ella,” he says, so plainly, so fiercely it cuts through every doubt in my chest. “I know this is fast, maybe reckless, but hell, so is everything about my life. And you…you’re the only thing that’s felt steady since the moment I found you on that trail.” He pauses, his eyes boring meaningfully into mine. “I’m falling in love with you, Ella.”
A soft gasp escapes my lips. I stare blankly at him, unable to wrap my head around his words. My heart is pounding so loud it drowns everything else out.
Then he says the words again and this time, it hits home…
“I love you, Ella.”
Chapter Ten
Zack
“I love you, Ella.”
I say it again, slower this time. Like repetition might make it more real. Like she isn’t just standing there with those wide eyes and stunned silence that’s starting to gut me more than any fire ever could.
Shit.
Did I mess this up? Is it too much, too fast?
Maybe I shouldn’t have said it…not yet. She barely knows me. We’ve only had one night. Sure, it was electric, and I haven’t been able to get her out of my head since the second she smiled at me in that cave, but that doesn’t mean she feels the same.
My heart thuds hard against my ribs, and I try to swallow down the heat in my throat. “Ella, I know that might’ve come out of nowhere. I just—I needed you to know. And listen, if you don’t feel the same way yet, that’s okay. I’ll wait. I’m not going anywhere.”
She blinks up at me, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. My chest tightens.
Then…she smiles.
It’s soft, radiant, full of wonder and emotion and something I’ve never had pointed at me quite like this. “I feel exactly the same, Zack,” she whispers. “I thought I was crazy. That it was too soon. But I haven’t stopped thinking about you either.”
My ears ring. I’m not sure I heard that right.
“Say that again,” I rasp, like I need to hear it to believe it wasn’t all in my head.
She steps in closer, placing her hands on my chest like they belong there. “I love you,” she says, stronger this time, her voice steady and sure.
I don’t hesitate. I crush my mouth to hers, devouring the words, the moment, everything. She tastes like hope. Like everything I thought I couldn’t have.
My good hand slides around her waist, gripping tight, while the other rests lightly against her cheek. I deepen the kiss, sliding my tongue between her lips. I feel her sigh against my lips, and I’m a second away from locking the damn office door and taking her right here when a loudahemslices through the air.
We both freeze.
Ella jolts back, cheeks flaming. I turn, breath short, jaw clenched, and find a petite redhead standing in the doorway, hands on her hips and an enormous grin spreading across her face.
