34. Luke
Chapter 34
Luke
After graduation, the Novaks guide all of us into poses with Wes in his cap and gown. A lump forms in my throat that Chloe can’t be here for him on his big day. But she’s watching from somewhere, cheering him on.
He’ll be playing for the NHL, and Violet will be joining him on the road when she graduates after the summer semester from her accelerated program.
My chest aches a little seeing them go, knowing two of my closest friends won’t be on campus with us next semester. But that doesn’t mean the end of our friendship. I’m sure I’ll be attending some of Wes’s games and he’ll come back to cheer us on, and I’ll need to be in attendance for all of Violet’s future book signings or she’ll threaten me with genital mutilation again.
I harbored jealousy of their relationship for a long time, but now I’m nothing but happy for them. That’s what happens when the girl who has your heart gives you hers.
While Juliet snaps photos of Wes and his parents with a bored expression, I sweep the crowd for Sienna. She’s disappeared somewhere among the graduates and their loved ones, and my heart skips, even though the assholes who jumped her are behind bars.
A tiny pair of arms flings around my middle, knocking the wind out of me. “I’m going to miss you!”
Violet beams up at me before dropping her arms and glancing at Wes. Even though he knows he can trust us, Wes Novak’s possessive streak is not to be tested.
I would know. Neither is mine.
“I’ll miss you too, pipsqueak.”
She sticks her tongue out at me, but she’s still grinning. “Seriously though, I’m really glad you found Sienna. You seem a lot happier.”
While the Novaks ask Juliet about her tattoos, Wes manages to extract himself from the photo shoot and wraps his arms around Violet from behind, dropping his chin to the top of her head. “Chloe would be happy for you too.”
Chloe would be happy I’m happy, and I’m sure wherever she is now, she’s rooting for us.
Violet squeezes my hand. “So would your dad.”
A lump catches in my throat. “Yeah.”
He’d be fucking over the moon to see me this happy with a girl I love.
“Luke!” My favorite voice in the world calls out over the crowd.
I can’t help but grin. Can’t take my eyes off her as she races toward me with a huge ass grin on her face, long brown hair flying behind her, and jumps into my arms.
Knox claps Damien and Finn on the shoulder. “All right, boys. Let’s go find us a puck bunny.”
Violet's nose scrunches. “One of these days, the three of you are going to fall for a girl and you won’t even think of another.”
Knox and Damien both chuckle. Even Finn flashes an amused grin. “That’ll be a cold day in hell,” Damien says.
Sienna turns my face to hers and the rest of the world goes quiet. Her green eyes mesmerize me exactly as they did that first time I saw her. The first time I saw her photo on social media, then again, when we finally met in person at that hotel bar. And every day since.
“I love you.” She doesn’t bother whispering or trying to hide it. She doesn’t give a fuck about that now. As long as we have each other, nothing else matters.
“I love you too, sweetheart.” She kisses me until I set her down. “I got you something.”
When I hand her the photos, her face lights up. “Oh my god! Are these the photos from the camera film?”
“Yep. Although I kept the one I took of you tied to my bed.”
She feigns a scowl before flipping through the photos, laughing even while the tears shimmer. The photo I took of her while she slept. A photo she snapped of Juliet in the library. Another that she took of Bud’s fuzzy face. The photo she snapped of me on a whim at that hotel bar. The story of our relationship, from the moment we met.
“You’re more than a pretty sight.” I lift the camera she gave me to snap another of her. The same words I said to her the night we met. “Way, way fucking more.”
She beams, cradling my cheek with a heartbreakingly gentle hand. “I knew this is how it would be with you.”