It’s all I need to hear. My orgasm surges through me with an intensity that makes my vision blur, makes my toes curl and my muscles tense and relax, tense and relax, over and over and over again.
“Fuck, oh fuck,” he grinds out through gritted teeth as his own climax overtakes him, his warmth spreading deep inside me while we cling to each other and try to catch our breath.
He lowers himself onto the bed next to me, his hard length still throbbing inside me as I drape a leg across his body. “Can we stay like this?” I ask, nestling against the hard planes of his chest. “Just like this? Until…”
“For as long as you want, baby,” he kisses my forehead. “When I said those words earlier, I meant them. I’m staying right here with you until you tell me otherwise.”
“What if I don’t tell you otherwise?” I know I’m pushing my luck, but what can I say? I’m greedy. I’ve had the best week—and by far the best sex—of my life, and I don’t want it to end. “What if I want you to stay with me… forever?”
He grins and tips my chin up until we’re looking into each other’s eyes. “Then I’ll stay forever.”
He isn’t joking this time. He isn’t being polite. He isn’t just telling me what I want to hear.
I can see it reflected in his gaze as he stares back at me.
He’s staying.
With me.
Forever.
EPILOGUE
RACHEL
It’s been eight months, almost to the very day, since he promised me he’d stay forever.
We’ve stayed in each other’s arms every night since then, whether at my family home in Kismet Falls or his estate in England. I learned early on in our relationship that the location doesn’t really matter. The only important thing is that we have each other, that we support and love each other through whatever life throws in front of us.
I know it isn’t always going to be easy, but it’s always going to be better with him by my side. These are the thoughts running through my mind as I walk down the aisle with my father. In a few moments, the man who raised me will give me away to the man who taught me how powerful love can be, and I’ll become Mrs. Liam Tipton, Viscountess Rochester.
It’s crazy to think that all of my wildest, most impossible dreams have come true. Crazy to think that my own personal fairy tale really is going to have the happiest of endings.
I’ve dreamed about this day ever since I was a little girl, but I never planned for it. When I pictured my perfect, ideal wedding in the yard behind the house my family has owned for generations, I never thought it would actually happen that way.
But here I am. Here we are. Each step is bringing me closer to the part where we say those sacred vows and all my dreams finally come true.
“Love you, sweetheart,” my dad whispers as we reach the end of the aisle and he kisses my cheek. “Love you, too,” I smile, then blow my mom a quick kiss before turning toward the man who will be my husband in just a few short minutes.
“You look more beautiful than ever,” Liam beams, his eyes suspiciously bright with emotion. “You’ve made me the luckiest man in the world.”
“We’re both lucky.” I nibble at my bottom lip. “Are you ready?”
“More than I’ve ever been for anything in my life.”
And just like that, he knows exactly what to say to calm the butterflies in my stomach.
We look over at the old preacher who has been around ever since I can remember. He’s been here for every big milestone in my life and most of the ones in my parents’ lives, so it’s only fitting that he should be the one to usher Liam and me into this new chapter we’ll be sharing together.
“Let us take a moment to enjoy this blessed day,” the preacher begins, making my heart swell as Liam gives my hand a gentle, subtle squeeze. “And let’s celebrate the union of this lovely couple standing before us.”
As we start to say our vows, I know for sure that my heart couldn’t be any fuller than it is right now. It isn’t a big wedding—just our families and a few close friends—but it’s exactly the wedding we wanted to have. It’s exactly our speed. Simple but elegant. Classy but unpretentious.
As Liam would say, it’s perfection. And it’s the perfect beginning to the rest of our lives together.
