Every Saturday Night (Firsts and Forever 6)

“That sounds exhausting.”

He shook his head and smiled at me, as the rain soaked his hair and ran down his handsome face. “I’ll be fine.”

“I can’t believe you’d do that for me.”

“I’d do anything for you, mi amor.”

He spun me under our joined hands and pulled me close. We kept dancing in the rain while Owen splashed and frolicked and acted like this was the best day ever. In fact, maybe it was.

* * *

The wedding reception turned into a fun, upbeat house party that went on long into the night. Owen conked out around his usual time, and Lucky and I went on celebrating with our friends until about one a.m., when I finally had to admit I couldn’t keep my eyes open.

I found him one of my oversize t-shirts and some loose-fitting gym shorts to sleep in, and we curled up together in bed. The rain was still coming down outside, and as he held me in his arms I whispered, “This is the coziest I’ve ever been in my entire life.”

I couldn’t see him because my head was on his chest, but when he said, “Same,” I could hear the smile in his voice.

He drifted off soon after, but it turned out I was too wound up to fall asleep right away. Instead, I thought back over this remarkable day, when my friends got married and everything changed between Lucky and me.

It went beyond calling him my boyfriend. It even went beyond committing to a long-distance relationship. This thing between us just felt different, somehow—deeper and stronger.

I’d been so afraid of getting attached to him, not when I found out he was leaving, but when I started to realize just how much he meant to me. Gradually though, I’d managed to let go of that fear. And now, there was no denying the fact that I was falling totally in love with him.