Tate
I wasn’tsure what happened first, me pulling Daniel against me or him pulling my mouth to his. But we lay like that, at the top of the cliff, kissing and crying and refusing to let go. I wanted to stay composed for him. One of us needed to be the calm in the storm. I knew that much from my low points. But now that I had him in my arms, now that he’d chosen me, all the composure I’d had before was gone.
“Don’t ever…do that…again…” I sobbed between kisses. “You hear me?”
He nodded. “I hear you.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “And I won’t.”
“You need to go back to therapy.”
He nodded again. “I will.”
“Real therapy.”
And again. “I know.”
I held his face in my hand. “Not shoulder-pad lady with her tissue boxes.”
That made him laugh, a crying laugh, and I loved it.
“Fuck, Daniel. You scared the shit out of me.”
His lips ticked into a sad smile. “I’m sorry. But you have to make a promise to me, too.”
“What’s that?”
His face grew serious. “No matter how bad it gets, because chances are it’s going to go up and down like a fucking free-fall ride, don’t give up on me.”
“Promise, but don’t ever shut me out or give up on me, either.”
He kissed me softly. “I promise.
Both of us grew quiet. Then I looked up at him. “You were there, weren’t you? Last night at my apartment.”
“I was,” he admitted. “I came to try to fix everything but realized I didn’t know how and that you were better off—”
“It’s okay.” I pressed my finger against his lips. “You don’t need to explain anything. I get it. All of it.”
Daniel sighed. “I love you, Tate. I mean that.”
I smiled, running my hand through his hair. “I love you, too.”
Daniel got up to put his clothes back on, and I pulled out my phone.
“Now, what are you up to?”
I looked up at him. “We need another song, of course.”
He snorted out a laugh. “Seriously? Right now?”
“Yes,” I shot back at him, though I was smiling. “I have the perfect one.”
He sat back down beside me once he was dressed. “And what makes it so perfect?” He put his arm around me, looking down at the screen.
“Someone To You” by Banners started to play, and Daniel swallowed hard. “You’re right. That is perfect.”
* * *
“Okay,so is this the part where the car actually runs or…?” Luca asked from the very back seat, and I laughed, looking over at Daniel in the driver's seat.