Scored (V-Card Diaries 1)

Chapter 33

Ian

It took ten hours and every last bit of spray paint in my parents’ garage—and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to feel my “spraying finger” again—but the moment I see Evie’s face, I know every second was worth it.

“What…” She trails off with an awed shake of her head as she wanders closer to the painted sheet pinned to the clothesline. “What did you do?”

“I wanted to show you that I could take art therapy seriously.” I force myself to remain beside the tree that supports our old tree house, giving her space. “So, I redid the iceberg assignment. With a few changes.”

Her hand comes to hover in front of her lips and her eyes begin to shine. “It’s a love berg,” she murmurs, her throat working as she swallows.

“I wanted to prove to you that this isn’t a flash in the pan or a rebound,” I say. “I may have just woken up to the way I feel, but that doesn’t mean this feeling is new or shouldn’t be trusted. Just look at all the stuff lurking beneath the surface, Feisty. I basically had no choice but to fall in love with you.”

She blinks, sending tears streaking down her cheeks and that’s it, I can’t keep myself from her for another second. A beat later, she’s in my arms, hugging me tight as I drop kisses over her sweet curly head, praying harder than I’ve prayed in years that she won’t pull away from me again.

“I love you, Evie,” I say, “more than I’ve ever loved anyone. Please don’t push me away. We can figure this out. I know we can. Assuming you feel even half of what I feel.”

She pulls back, gazing up at me with wide, tear-filled eyes. “You painted a giant love mural. For me.”

“And it has all my favorite things about you,” I say, pointing toward the very bottom of the berg. “Down there is the way you make ordinary things feel magical. Even when you were a little kid, you had this way of seeing the world that just…blew me away. It made me want to be around you, to be a part of your world.”

“Like the Little Mermaid,” she says, more tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Exactly like that,” I say, swiping them away with my thumbs. “I would comb my hair with a fork with you any day. And that’s not even my favorite Evie thing. I love the way you face your problems, even when they’re hard or confusing, the way you’re always there for the people you love, and how warm and open-hearted you are, even when it would have been so easy, and so understandable, if you’d grown up bitter instead. So many people have let you down or underestimated the incredible person you are.”

“But not you,” she whispers.

I shake my head. “No, I’m guilty, too. I was so busy telling myself you were still a kid I needed to protect that I didn’t see the strong, smart, savvy woman you’d become. And I’m sorry for that. My only defense is that telling myself those things made it easier to deny the way I was starting to feel about you.”

“That makes me so happy but…” Her brows pinch closer together as she adds, “But I don’t want you to stay in New York for me, Ian. I mean, of course I selfishly want you close, but that isn’t—”

“What about New Jersey?” I ask. “Would that be close enough?”

She blinks and her mouth opens and closes a few times before she stammers, “You think you can get a spot on the team?”

“They haven’t offered yet, but I have my agent on the case, and all my fingers crossed. But if I do end up in Portland or on the West Coast, I can fly home every month and plan to do my summer conditioning in the city next year so we can have as much time together as possible. I know long distance isn’t ideal, but—”

“I didn’t think you’d want to,” she cuts in, her breath hitching as she fights another wave of tears. “I never imagined you’d… Not when this is so new. I mean, some crazy part of me thought you might ask me to come with you, but never that you’d go to so much trouble just for me.”

“For the woman I love?” I ask, cupping her face in my hand. “Hell, yes, I will. I’d crawl all the way here on my belly if I had to.”

Her lips tremble at the edges. “That wouldn’t be necessary. I’d meet you halfway.”

“So, does that mean you want to meet me halfway? For real?”

She bites her lip, worry creeping back into her eyes again. “On one condition—if the long-distance thing starts interfering with your ability to succeed with your new team, then we take a break. I love you too much to get in the way of your dreams.”