Nodding, he assures me, “There’s a Kia Rio waiting for us at the airport.”
“So we’ll spend our first night in our new home tonight?” I ask, grinning.
My smile must be contagious, as he smiles, too. “We will.”
The woman standing at the podium gets on her little microphone and announces that our flight will begin boarding. All the eager people already standing around begin to shuffle, but she begins to call up passengers with special circumstances first.
It’s here. It’s really here. None of the horrifying scenarios that played out in my head once I finally fell asleep came to pass. We made it through the airport, through security; no omniscient police force awaited us at the gates… Liam got away with it and we’re making a clean getaway.
Elation moves through me, like we really are going on a vacation. This was all so impossible, too wild even to dream up, and somehow it’s happening. Somehow the sexy marksman who was supposed to kill me is instead sweeping me off my feet and we’re riding off into the sunset. Or, to the sunset house, at least.
Looking over at Liam, seeing a glint of a twinkle in his eye, I’m so consumed with happiness I could burst.
My life has been far from a fairy tale and I had no expectation of ever escaping it, but here it is—my happily ever after.
Liam catches me looking at him and leans in for an impulsive kiss. It’s just a peck, but I grab his hand with my free one and twine our fingers together when he goes to pull back.
Sighing, gazing into my eyes, Liam tells me, “It’s just gonna be you and me from now on. When we get there… it’s all on us. You okay with that?”
Giving his hand a squeeze, I tell him, “I can’t think of anything better.”
He nods once, looking hopeful. We stand together, hands still entwined, and he grabs the suitcase with his free one. I go to grab my thrifty new purse but realize I’m still holding the apple cider. Taking one more long sip, despite the damage to my taste buds, I drop his hand just long enough to drop my cup into the nearby garbage. Once I return to Liam’s side, I take his hand, and together we board the plane to paradise.
THE END