Page 83 of Falling With You
“Fair enough. I just don’t think I have it in me right now.”
“You don’t have to do anything. You just have to heal. I’ll take care of you.”
“And I might just let you.”
“I was so scared. I was so scared that I would never be able to talk to you again. Never see you. I didn’t realize how important you were to me until I realized that no matter what happened, I wanted you in my life.”
“I’m fine, Aiden.” Tears filled her eyes, and I shook my head, leaning forward so we were nose-to-nose.
“I almost lost you,” I growled out, trying to stay calm. “I love you, dammit. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Her eyes widened some, and then she smiled. “I love you too, Aiden. I don’t want anything to happen either. So let’s just try to live in the moment like we said we’d do, okay? Because I love you so much.” I wiped her tears from her face and kissed her softly, trying not to touch her stitches.
“I didn’t realize I loved you until I thought I’d lost you. Not really. And shame on me. Because I should have realized what those feelings I was having were.”
“I’m kind of new to them, too. I didn’t realize until I almost lost you before either.”
“At your work?” She nodded. “You wouldn’t have lost me then. I’m an asshole, but I wasn’t that dumb.”
“Well, sometimes we’re dumb together. Now, can you just sit here a bit longer and talk to me about food or something silly?”
“There’s nothing silly about food,” I said, and she laughed before wincing.
“Okay, maybe not something funny. Maybe just something calm. I just want to hear your voice. And I just want to be with you.”
“Then can we yell and fight with each other later?”
“Of course,” she said softly. “I hear the makeup sex is the best part.”
“That’s the Sienna I love and adore.”
“Can you say it again?”
“That I love you?” She nodded. “I love you, Sienna Knight. I didn’t really understand what that word meant when I was a kid. I didn’t understand that you could have a family who loved you, that you could have people in your life that you cared for that were part of your soul. And while I loved someone else, someone close to us, it wasn’t the same. I hope you realize that. I hope you know that you’re my everything. My it. I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that I’m worthy of that, okay?”
She was crying again, and I wiped her tears one more time. “I loved her too, Aiden. She’ll always be here between us. But that’s okay. Because she should be. We should never forget. I’m so glad I get to love you. I’m so glad that I get to call you mine. Even if it hurts a little.”
My heart thudded just a bit, and then I nodded, wiping away my own tear. “I think we can do that. I think that’s the perfect way to honor her. Although, if you tell anyone that I’m crying like this, I will have to take away your favorite foods.”
“Deal. We’ll both be stern and strong and not cry.” She hiccupped a sob, and I kissed her again.
“I love you, Sienna,” I whispered.
“I love you, Aiden Connolly. Even if I hated you first.”
And then I laughed and held her hand, wanting to hold the woman I loved but knowing that she needed to heal first.
Because it had taken us too long to get here, even if it felt like a blink.
And though I wanted to punch something, wanted to scream at the world for what had happened, I wasn’t going to. Because she was my touchstone, my calm in the storm.
And I would never take that for granted. Never again.
Sienna Knight was mine.
And I would do everything in my power until the end of my days to let the rest of the world know that, so they understood.
Epilogue