Page 99 of Escape

The next thing I knew, I was being held in Huck’s arms as we danced together. Never in a million years would I have ever thought I’d get this lucky.

I gave myself some time to soak it up and take it all in, but eventually I couldn’t hold myself back any longer. This felt like the perfect moment.

“This was beautiful,” I said.

He nodded. “Yeah, I’m really happy for the both of them.”

“I was surprised by how much the ceremony affected me,” I shared.

Curiosity and concern washed over him. “Were you… were you thinking about the fact that you were engaged not that long ago?”

My eyes widened with horror, my stomach dropping. The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. “Oh God, no. Not at all.”

“Okay. I think that’s good. What did you mean, then?”

I glanced to my right, where I saw Jesse and Sawyer dancing with one another just a few feet away from us. The pair were so caught up in each other that neither noticed me looking at them.

When I returned my attention to Huck, I said, “It gave me hope.”

“Hope?”

Nodding, I explained, “During the ceremony, I recalled the story you’d shared with me about what they had gone through. Knowing that Jesse and Sawyer lost their way so long ago but somehow managed to find their way back to one another makes me believe that happy endings are possible despite adversity. I mean, I saw it with Liv and Brixton when they were at the diner, but seeing this was different. I don’t know. I guess it really hit me at that moment that it’s possible I could have that, too.”

Huck’s features softened, the corners of his mouth tipping up. “You’re going to have that, honey. I have no doubt about it. If you want that happy ending, you’re going to get it.”

Maybe I was setting myself up for disappointment, but I had to ask. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

I licked my lips, hesitating briefly. Once I pushed this issue, once I put the question out there, I wouldn’t be able to take it back. I considered that possibility and quickly realized that wasn’t an option for me. Even if I didn’t hear what I was hoping to hear, I still needed to know how he felt.

Finally, I asked, “Do you want this one day?”

“A wedding?”

I shrugged. “A wedding, yes. But I was referring mostly to the marriage.”

For several long moments, Huck didn’t respond. It seemed he needed to take at least the same amount of time to consider his answer as I needed to ask the question. As sure as I was about my desire to know how he felt, I was suddenly feeling unsure this was the right time to ask.

What if he didn’t respond the way I hoped, and I had to spend the rest of the time at this wedding feeling awkward?

Following a painstaking delay, Huck said, “For a long time, I thought about marriage as being something I’d eventually want. To some degree, I guess I assumed it would ultimately happen. But I only ever viewed it as an idea, if that makes sense.”

“I’m not sure I understand what you mean,” I confessed.

My eyes followed the movement of Huck’s throat as he swallowed. They remained there until he spoke and pulled my attention to his face again. “The easiest way to explain it is probably for me to just be totally honest with you. I hope this doesn’t freak you out completely, but it’s only been since you’ve come back into my life that I’ve started seriously thinking about my future, about who I want to spend my life with.”

My lips parted, my mouth suddenly feeling particularly parched. “Are… are you saying?—”

“I’m saying that I’ve fallen in love with you, Josie.”

Despite the rapid rise and fall of my chest, which proved my lungs were functioning, oxygen seemed to be in short supply. My pulse was pounding—in my chest, in my ears. I could feel the blood rushing in my veins.

Huck Davidson had admitted he’d fallen in love with me.

Maybe I’d just gotten my happy ending.

“You love me?”