Page 164 of Along Came Amor
Her laugh was indulgent. “This is why you need me to keep an eye on you.”
“I can’t think of anyone better.” He leaned in to kiss her, but she pulled away.
“I’m not done with my list yet,” she said playfully.
“Where are we on the bullet points?”
“The last one.”
“The one with multiple parts?”
She nodded, gazing into his eyes, and what he saw there made his breath catch. “This is where I tell you all the things I love about you.”
“Oh yeah?” He couldn’t stop the goofy grin from spreading across his face. “What’s the first item on that list?”
“Your eyes.” She brushed a fingertip under his left one. “These dreamy, trustworthy eyes. They were one of the first things I noticed about you.”
“Were they?” He’d been teased as a kid for having “pretty” eyes, but they’d landed him a job on TV and the trust of this woman, so he couldn’t complain. “What else did you notice?”
“Your smile.” Her own lips pulled into a grin as she stroked her fingers over his mouth. “It’s so genuine and friendly.”
“So in summary, you like my face,” he said.
“Iloveyour face,” she corrected. “But that’s not all.”
“No?”
“I also love your confidence.”
He let out a soft chuckle. “Some would call it ego.”
She shook her head. “Ego is unearned, or else delusional. You believe in yourself, and it’s an extremely sexy quality.”
That gave him a weird, warm feeling in his chest. “Go on.”
“I love the way you listen and pay attention. The fierce way you protect the people you love. The way youseeme. I can be messy around you without worrying that you’ll love me any less. I trust you with my whole being, in a way I’ve never trusted anyone, not even myself. You ask me what I want and genuinely care about the answer. You make me feel treasured. You’re considerate of my feelings, and you understand that I need time and space to think. You’re emotionally open, and you make it safe for me to feel all my emotions around you.” Her voice grew stronger, nearly gutting him with the depth of her regard. “You take responsibility for your actions, and you receive feedback like an adult. Youapologize. And you never, ever withdraw or withhold yourself from me. You’re shaking your head, and maybe these are small things to you, but to me, Roman? They’reeverything.”
“Ava, that’s...” Even for someone who had a pretty high opinion of himself, the thoroughness of her observations made his cheeks heat.
A delighted smile lit her face. “Are you blushing?”
“I think I am.” He definitely was.
She took his hands again. “When I went to the bar that night, I was looking for something different. Something new. I decided to trust the Universe... and it led me to you.”
“I’m really glad you ordered that shitty drink,” he murmured, and she laughed.
“God, me too.” She stroked his knuckles with her thumb. “Do you remember what you said that night? On the roof?”
“I said a lot of things. Which part?”
“You made a toast. I remember, because I wrote it down.”
“Of course you did.” His lips curved. “What did I say?”
“You made a toast to me, and to imperfection, dreaming, and welcoming whatever comes next—”
“With or without a plan,” he finished, remembering.
