"I swear it, Kelli. I swear on every godsdamn thing I am."
I fist his jacket tight in my hands, blinking hard.
"You better not," I mutter, voice thick. "I’ll kill you myself if you do."
He laughs, a low broken sound, and presses his forehead to mine.
"I believe you," he mutters.
We stand there a long time.
Just breathing each other in.
Letting the past burn away around us.
The girl who was sold and broken.
The man who ran to escape his own damn heart.
Gone.
All that’s left now is the woman who clawed her way back to life.
And the man stubborn enough to follow her into hell and drag her back out again.
Together.
Always.
I shift, wrapping my arms around his waist.
Feeling his heart pounding against mine like a drumbeat.
Strong.
Steady.
Real.
"We deserve better," I whisper.
"Yeah," he says, his voice a low rumble against my temple. "We do."
"And we're gonna get it," I say fierce.
He pulls back just enough to look me dead in the eye.
"Damn right we are."
He kisses me then.
Not rough.
Not hungry.
But slow.
Sure.
