Chapter 32
CHAPTER
THIRTY-TWO
MILES
Iknew the game was the right choice the moment I saw the smile on Miranda’s face after her very first shot. She radiated happiness—pure, unfiltered joy—and it filled me with so much pride I thought my chest might actually burst.
It’s bittersweet, though. I can’t help but think where she might be today if everything hadn’t happened.
If she hadn’t quit basketball at fifteen…
there’s no question in my mind she would’ve earned a full-ride scholarship somewhere huge.
She could’ve played Division I, maybe coached, maybe even been in the WNBA. She’s that naturally gifted.
But when I mentioned that on the drive home, she shook her head and said she can’t think like that. Can’t live in the land of what if. I get it. Regret is a brutal pill to swallow, and she’s had enough of those for a lifetime.
I’m just grateful she has basketball back now—even in this small way. Seeing her out there smiling, laughing, taking shot after shot… it lit something in her. Something she thought she’d lost forever.
The way she and Anna fell into each other’s arms and just held on, both of them crying with joy—that’s something I’ll never forget. Those two have survived some unimaginable things. Anna with her parents. Miranda with her past. And through it all, they became each other’s family.
Watching them tonight, full of emotion and pride and healing, I was just happy. So damn happy.
Tonight was a win long before anyone looked at the scoreboard.
The moment we step inside the house, Miranda turns to me, her eyes already shimmering with another round of happy tears.
“You, Miles Keller, are the single most amazing person I’ve ever known,” she says, her voice trembling with emotion.
“Your love is unbelievable, and I am so incredibly grateful to have it. Tonight… what you did for me was a gift I’ll never be able to repay.
I don’t know why you chose me, but I’m so glad you did. ”
She takes a breath, her smile wobbling as tears finally spill.
“And I want you to know that you’re it for me. You’re my one. You’re my everything. I want to marry you, have all your babies, grow old with you, and spend every single second of the rest of my life loving you. And even then, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to express just how much I love you.”
I stare at her, stunned, my heart pounding so hard it feels like it might break free from my ribs.
“I feel the same way about you,” I say softly before leaning in and kissing her—slow, sweet, reverent. I smile against her lips. “Was that a proposal?”
She lets out a breathy laugh. “No.” She wipes a tear from her cheek. “I expect a traditional proposal someday… but I’m just letting you know that it’s happening. And when you do ask me, it will be the most beautiful yes I’ll ever say.”