As if considering it for a moment, he slowly nodded. “I think I kind of sort of am.”
“I’m affianced,” she said, more to herself than him.
“Feel weird?”
Nodding, she said, “Oh yeah. But good weird.”
Ethan smiled, still with her in his arms. As it had many moons before, the light spilled over her face. Instead of tears—that he had put there—joy shone in her eyes. He’d put that there, too.
Running the pad of his thumb across the soft skin of her cheek, he wiped away phantom tears.
Willow watched, understanding as he echoed the last embrace they had there. She thought about kissing him, and her tongue naturally darted out to wet her lips in anticipation. His eyes raked over every shadow on her face, his thumb brushing her lower lip, and then he leaned in, giving her the kiss he held back that night long ago.
As was usually the case when Ethan kissed her, fireworks went off in her mind, in her heart, in her very soul. She’d never been so full of joy and love before, and she wasn’t sure how her body managed to contain all of it.
Melting against him as he drew back, Willow rested her head against his chest and just hugged him.
“Much better,” he said, fondly rubbing her back.
Memory stirred, she thought of that night. All of it, the exciting parts and the awful parts. Even after everything, she wasn’t sure he completely understood how much she had needed him.
Softly, not lifting her head, she said, “You were my hero that night, you know that?”
Gently kissing the top of her head, he said, “You’re mine every day.”
Another grin transformed her face and she looked up at him. That time tears did shine in her eyes, but there was no longer even a trace of sadness in their gray depths.
“Right back at ya,” she whispered.
THE END