“Thank you,” I say, but my eyes are relaying a million other things that I hope he sees. I think he might.
“For what?”
I could go on and on, detailing everything I’m thankful to him for, but it all comes down to the same thing. “For saving me.”
His face moves a little closer, and I can almost feel his forehead leaning into mine. “You’re welcome.”
I see devotion and loyalty and love and desire when I look into his eyes. I see the boy I loved’s eyes in the face of the man I love. I see a person who sacrificed ten years of his life to save mine. I see everything I’ve always wanted and everything I hope to one day deserve, and the man beside me stares at me in a similar kind of way.
It’s the best birthday I’ve ever had. Maybe because I never thought I’d celebrate another one. Or maybe because I’m alive to have a birthday when the odds put me in the one-in-a-million range. But I guess this is the best birthday ever because he’s here to share it with me. He isn’t my husband or my fiancé or my boyfriend . . . or even my secret lover. He’s my friend. My best friend.
For now, for me, that’s more than I ever could have imagined having again. For now, this is exactly what I need. Torrin Costigan is worth the wait until I’ve completed the process of putting myself back together.
“Everyone thought I was dead.”
Torrin’s brows pull together like it’s a painful memory. Then he shakes his head. “Everyone was wrong.”
“You found me alive.” I smile when I want to kiss him. He smiles when I know he wants to kiss me back. “But then you brought me back to life.”
He exhales, and just before he leans back, his forehead presses against mine. It’s fleeting and forever all at once. In the advancing twilight, that little light still flickering below us lights up his whole face. It illuminates the distance between us too.
“Someday?” he asks.
I nod and scoot a little closer. My hand finds his just beneath the surface of the sand and forms around it. No one watching would think anything of it. But he knows what it means. So do I. “One day.”
Thank you for reading COLLARED by NEW YORK TIMES and USATODAY bestselling author, Nicole Williams.
Make sure to check out Nicole’s next book, HATING HIM, releasing this June!
Nicole loves to hear from her readers. You can connect with her on
Facebook: Nicole Williams (Official Author Page)
Twitter: nwilliamsbooks
Blog: nicoleawilliams.blogspot.com
Other Works by Nicole:
CRASH, CLASH, and CRUSH (HarperCollins)
UP IN FLAMES (Simon & Schuster UK)
LOST & FOUND, NEAR & FAR, HEART & SOUL
FINDERS KEEPERS, LOSERS WEEPERS
THE FABLE OF US
THREE BROTHERS
HARD KNOX, DAMAGED GOODS
CROSSING STARS
GREAT EXPLOITATIONS SAGA
THE EDEN TRILOGY
THE PATRICK CHRONICLES
Nicole Williams, Collared
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends