Chapter 28
JAKE
I’m grateful I don’t have to be on set until the afternoon because I stayed up all night reading Amy’s book, devouring every word until my eyes were raw and burning. I’m not even sure if it was from exhaustion or the tears that wouldn’t stop.
Because this isn’t just a novel, it’s a love story. Our love story told through her eyes, with all the heartbreak and hope and truth I was too blind to see before.
She didn’t leave because it was too hard. She left because she loved me enough to do the hard thing.
And that realization guts me.
There’s guilt too. Shame. In the quiet way her main character hides her pain, the way she fears being a burden, I see the parts of Amy she never let me see. Or maybe I never looked close enough.
She hasn’t even had a full flare-up around me yet… but I can’t stand the thought that she’s already bracing for the day I’ll see her differently. Like her limits might make her less.
God, no. She’s not less. She’s more. She’s everything.
By the time I finish the last page, I don’t just know this book is a bestseller in the making—I know I’ve been an ass.
And more than that, I know I’m not letting her leave Hungary without making it crystal clear—she’s mine. If she’ll still have me.
No more silence. No more space. No more lingering doubts.
This book? It’s her grand gesture, the grandest of all. A love letter dressed as fiction, and what do I have to offer in return? A plastic sword and a few rehearsed lines?
She deserves more. My Amy deserves everything.
And maybe I can’t give her the world right now, not the way I want to, but what I can offer is something real… solid and unwavering.
A promise that I’m done pretending. That I’m done letting fear dictate my choices.
That she is it for me.
Always has been. Always will be.
So I shower, dress, and try to eat something and fail miserably. My stomach is a knot of nerves and caffeine, but I don’t care. I have no script for this—no character to hide behind.
It’s just me now. And I need her to see that.
She flew halfway across the world and handed me her heart in a paperback.
Now it’s my move, and I need to get her here for it. I can’t do the exact grand gesture I wish to do, but I can give her a piece of her fantasy.
I reach the set, and Maggie is there, already dressed as Celandine.
“Wow,” she says, eyeing me over her coffee. “You look like you haven’t slept. Or is this just the makeup for your dramatic betrayal reveal scene?”
I shake my head, a small smile tugging at my lips. “Lack of sleep. Busy plotting.”
“World domination?”
My smile widens. “Something like that. Would you help me if I did something totally unhinged?”
She tilts her head, intrigued. “Does it involve the surprise package from yesterday?”
“You knew?”
She rolls her eyes. “Will is many things. Subtle? Not one of them. I’m surprised you didn’t know first.”
“Yes. It does.”
She leans in, a grin forming. “Alright. I’m listening.”
I rub the back of my neck, suddenly a little self-conscious. “You know those grand gestures fools in love always do?”
She gasps and claps her hands. “Oh! You’re going for your ‘You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you’ moment?”
“My what now?”
“Mr. Darcy!” She laughs, eyes sparkling. “Pride and Prejudice? Come on, don’t tell me you’ve never read it.”
I laugh. “Actually, with my Amy? I think I’m going more for my Anlon of Persefia moment.”
She lights up. “Even better! That’s perfect.”
Her excitement is contagious, and it lifts some of the weight I’ve been carrying. Maybe, just maybe, this could be our turning point.
“Okay, I’m your helper; tell me what we need to do.”
“Nothing right now, but when we get in the field scene, that’s when it will all go down. For the moment, I need to get my ducks in a row fast enough.”
I’m honestly impressed by how much I’ve managed to pull off in under three hours since I texted Amy, telling her a PA would pick her up and bring her to set.
It’s not a full crew day, mostly close-up shots, so I asked our director to reshuffle a couple of scenes. She hesitated at first, but when Maggie chimed in with “It’s for love,” I swear I nearly tackled her. But it worked, so I took the win.
The thing is, what I’m about to do today? It’s bold. Unhinged, maybe. Definitely the kind of move Will would wholeheartedly approve of.
By the time we reach the scene, I know she’s arrived. I catch sight of her at the edge of the set, a little confused, her eyes scanning everything like it doesn’t quite make sense yet.
I can’t blame her. It doesn’t look like much. Not yet.
I stand in the open field built for this very scene, the fake sunset glowing behind me, a wind machine humming soft and steady. My heart’s pounding like I’m about to do a live stunt without cables.
“Everyone ready?” the director calls. “Silence on set. Action!”
And just like that, it begins.
“Prince Anlon?”
I turn toward Maggie, who’s doing an impressive job of keeping a straight face, though I can see the smirk dancing in her eyes.
“Is that who I am?” I begin, my voice steady despite the storm in my chest. “A prince? A prince of what? A broken kingdom?”
Those are the lines. The rest? That’s all me.
“This isn’t who I am. But it’s different now. Now I know. Now I’ve woken up. And I’m me. The man who loves you, Amy Sinclair.”
A gasp breaks through the silence, from the edge of the set.
Maggie grins, stepping out of frame as I turn to her… Amy.
And I start walking.
The crew steps aside without a word, making space like this moment belongs to us. Like maybe it always did.
Her eyes find mine, wide and glassy with tears, but she doesn’t move. Not yet.
I keep going.
“I loved you before I knew your name. Before I knew your face. I loved your words. Your heart. The way you looked at the world with wonder when all I’d known was cynicism.”
My voice cracks. I let it. Let them all hear it.
“You reminded me that love isn’t about perfection. It’s about choosing. Again and again. Even when it’s hard. Even when it hurts.”
She takes a step forward, her lips parted like she’s forgotten how to breathe. The light hits her just right, haloed like a memory I’ve been chasing across a thousand miles.
“And I choose you. Every version of you. The one who hides behind sarcasm. The one who’s brave enough to say the hard things. The one who loved me before I even knew how to love myself.”
I smile, my chest aching in the best possible way.
“You declared your love through your craft. So now I’m using mine to tell you how lost I am in you.” I glance at her, teasing. “Even if… you’ve questioned my acting talent more times than I care to count.”
She winces, a breath of laughter escaping her, and I stop just in front of her. Close enough to reach for her, but I wait.
“I hurt you. I hurt us, stumbling through everything I didn’t know how to face. But you let me grow. You gave me the space to become the man who could stand here now and say this. Without fear.”
I drop to one knee.
Her hand flies to her mouth. A soft, stunned sob.
From my jacket pocket, I pull out a simple silver ring. A prop, meaningless to anyone else.
But not to us.
“This is a prop,” I say quietly. “It’s fake. Temporary. Just like I used to think love was.”
She’s crying now.
“But I’ve got a real one coming, Fangirl. One that took months to find and even longer to become worthy of giving it to you.”
I take a steady breath.
“You don’t have to marry me. Not now. Maybe not ever.
This isn’t about a ring. It’s a promise that I’ll keep showing up.
As me. Not the movie star. Not the guy from the fan site.
Just me—a blend of both. I know there’ll be hard days.
Days when your body doesn’t cooperate. Days when everything feels too loud, too bright, too much.
But I’ll be there with cozy blankets, naan bread, and murder mysteries.
Every time. No questions. No judgment. I’m the man who loves you exactly as you are.
In every timeline, every universe, every story. ”
She lets out a breathless laugh, falls to her knees in front of me, and wraps her hands around mine like she’s grounding us both.
“The ring doesn’t matter,” she whispers. “You do.”
I nod, my forehead pressed to hers, and for a moment, neither of us moves.
“I was never ashamed of being a fangirl,” she says quietly. “It’s how I love—with my whole heart. Including you. And that’s what made this hurt so much.”
“I’m leaving LA,” I say softly.
She blinks, stunned. “Not running,” I add quickly. “Choosing. For the first time in my life, I’m building something real. Something that’s mine. And wherever it is… I want you there. If you’ll have me.”
She smiles, her tears spilling freely now. “You really are a drama queen, Hollander.”
I laugh, wrapping my arms around her. “Only for you, Sinclair.”
A ripple of applause breaks the silence. Gentle at first, like the crew is afraid to interrupt. Then it builds. Maggie’s clapping with tears in her eyes, someone whistles, and another voice shouts, “It’s about damn time!”
But I don’t hear any of it. Not really.
All I see is her.
Kneeling in front of me. Windblown hair from the fan, cheeks flushed, tears glimmering in her eyes. Looking at me like I hung the stars.
My girl. My muse. My fucking miracle.
And I don’t wait.
I cup her face, slide my fingers into her hair, and I kiss her, hard and unapologetic.
I’ve been starving for this. Like I’m branding her with my mouth, my tongue, and my soul.
She gasps, then melts completely, her hands fisting in my tunic like she needs me to breathe just like I need her.
I tilt her head and kiss her deeper, pouring everything into it—every ounce of love, desperation, and relief. Letting her taste everything I haven’t said. Everything I’m too wrecked to put into words.
She moans, and the sound goes straight to my chest. Maybe a little lower.
God, I missed this. Missed her. Missed us.
I kiss her until the world disappears. Until there’s no applause, no crew, no cameras. Just us.
And when I finally pull back, her lips are swollen, her lashes wet, and her smile…
Her smile could stop time.
“You’re mine,” I say, low and certain, brushing my thumb across her cheek. “I’ll spend the rest of my life proving it… if you let me.”
She laughs. “We have to get a kitten.”
“Anything you want.” I grin, pulling her into my arms, holding her against my chest like the answer’s already yes.
Because it is.
Because she’s here.
And I’m never letting her go again.