Chapter 54 NOAH
NOAH
Evergreen Books is packed.
Gabe and Ciarán have gone all out—fairy lights loop between shelves, jars of wildflowers explode in color on every surface. The front window has a string of tiny green hearts draped over the new carved Evergreen Books sign sitting alongside the tiny town.
On a side table, platters of Italian finger food are lined up. Theo’s already digging into the cannoli and has powdered sugar on his black shirt. Abbie and Aiden are chatting by the nook. Ciarán has Rose on his hip as he talks to the author, pointing around the space.
I look around and spot Gabe. He’s near the front of the store in a soft green shirt, sleeves rolled, head thrown back in laughter as he talks to a group of people.
The event was phenomenal. Gabe spoke so confidently, smiling the entire time.
He panicked last night. This is the most high-profile event he’s done, the biggest turnout of people in his safe space.
And while he’s made huge improvements over the last four months in going out more, he still gets anxious when too many people are close.
I thought he was on a downward spiral last night, but then he journaled for a while and practiced the grounding techniques he’s learned in therapy.
He was still a bit shaky going to bed, but we lay there talking for an hour before going to sleep, and I could see the excitement come back to his eyes.
When he moves away from the group, I approach him, slip my hand around his waist, and kiss his cheek. The warmth of it settles on my lips.
“You good, baby?”
“Yeah, that went great. I’m relieved. You having fun?”
“Yeah, it was amazing. Me, Theo, and Aiden were talking about going to a game soon. Probably be gone for a night, that okay with you?”
I went to a game with Aiden last month, but we came back that night. I spent the whole time away worrying about Gabe. Unnecessarily, he was completely fine, but I still hate going too far. I know it’s not healthy to cling to him, and it’s something I’m working on.
He shakes his head, smiling. “You don’t need to ask permission to go. I want you to be able to have fun without worrying about me.”
I pull him closer and press a kiss to his lips. “I’ll always worry about you. I love you.”
His eyes soften, and he brings his hand up to play with the hair at the back of my head.
I feel my eyes get heavy-lidded. Something so simple always feels so good when he does it.
“I know, I love you too. I’ll miss you every second you’re gone, but you should still go.
I know how much your friendships with Theo and Aiden mean to you,” he says gently.
I nod my head, he’s right. I’m as close as ever with Aiden, and my friendship with Theo has only grown over time. Between them, Gabe, Abbie, and Ciarán, I finally have the family I always wanted. I have people who see the real me and don’t expect a show.
“It’ll be fun,” Gabe says encouragingly.
“Yeah, it will,” I agree.
He gives me a broad smile. “I’m going to talk to some more people before they clear out.”
I give his waist a squeeze. “Sure, find me later.”
I make my way over to Aiden and Abbie with a dopey smile on my face.
“You look like you’re about to propose,” she says in greeting.
“I do not,” I say defensively, patting the small box in my pants. I bought the ring a month ago, the only person I told was Aiden, and I asked him not to tell anyone. I shoot him a look, but he shakes his head, lips pursed, trying not to laugh.
“I’m joking. You just look so smitten,” she says, grinning. “It’s adorable.”
I let out a nervous laugh, hoping she doesn’t hear how strained it is.
By the time everyone leaves, the nerves and anticipation have me in a sweat. It’s just me and Gabe, tidying up the last of the event now. He keeps flicking his eyes toward me as he chews on his lip.
“Everything okay?” I ask.
He nods his head, gaze distant as he stares at the nook, fairy lights still twinkling above. We never took the extra ones down after our first date, and the space is glowing.
“Can I read something from my journal to you?” His voice wavers as though he’s nervous to ask. I step into his space and take his hand.
“Of course,” I tell him, looking into his eyes, wondering what this is about.
He walks us to the store counter and grabs his journal from behind it, then leads us to the nook. When he looks back at me, his cheeks are pink, and he has that lovely, shy smile on his face.
“This is where we first kissed,” he starts, the memory making me smile. “Where we had our first date.”
I laugh, seeing the spark of happiness light his eyes, that, and the twinkle from the fairy lights, make them look like gleaming emeralds.
“Yeah, baby. Some of the best moments of my life.”
His eyes crinkle at the corners. “Me too. I, um, wrote something… about us.”
I nod, dying to know what it is. He clears his throat, cheeks going impossibly red. Tears form in his eyes, and his voice wobbles. I’m not prepared for what I hear next:
“He didn’t try to fix me. He didn’t rush in with false promises or easy light.
He stayed—close enough that I could find my way back.
On the days when it felt like the world was water and I was one breath away from drowning, he sat beside me and waited.
Sometimes he said nothing at all, just reached out a hand—and somehow, that was enough.
Enough to remind me there was air above the surface, and that I was still capable of reaching it.
Love like that doesn’t shout. It doesn’t demand. It’s quiet and constant and stubborn in its devotion.
I used to think I had to be whole before I could be loved. But he showed me that love isn’t conditional—it’s the hand holding yours through every stumble, every wretched sob, every rise back toward the light.
And maybe that’s what healing really is. Not escape. Not forgetting.
Just learning how to breathe with the person you love, over and over again.”
When he finishes reading, silver-lined eyes find mine. They’re a forest after the rain—tender green, opening to the light. They’re spring, and new life. Growth where old wounds used to live.
I can’t breathe. My throat burns as my fingers wrap around the box in my pocket.
I swallow hard. All I can do is meet his gaze and let him see it there—the promise I’ll always be there for him, always love him.
And when he exhales, shoulders loosening on a relieved breath, it’s like watching him come home to himself.
“Gabe,” I whisper. “It’s beautiful.”
He holds the journal in both hands, staring down at it, and when he finally looks back at me, the whole world fades away.
I move toward him and press my face into his hair, holding him to me. “I have something to show you,” I tell him, heart taking off at a gallop.
He tilts his head back to look at me in question. I smile as I take his hand.
The garden is silent as we slip out the back door.
The space glows—vintage looking bulb lights loop along the side and back fencing, lanterns flicker in the corners, and willow branches make up an arch in the center, their leaves catching the light.
Gabe stops, his hand grips mine harder as he gasps.
“Noah…” His voice is thick. “You did this?”
“Yeah.” My chest is tight as I watch him take it in. “You always said you wanted to do something with this garden. I wanted to give you that. A place that feels like you—quiet, soft, a little wild but beautiful.”
“Blue.” He sniffles.
I step closer. “I didn’t do it alone. Ciarán made sure I didn’t kill anything when planting, and Theo brought tools to help with fencing.
Aiden and Abbie mostly just bossed us around.
This part…” I gesture around us. “This was easy. The hard part was not telling you. You make me want to tell you everything.”
His lips part, but no sound comes out. The breeze moves a lock of hair across his forehead, and I gently push it back
“I went down to the lake this morning,” I tell him, my voice wavering, “and cut these from the willow.” I nod toward the willow arch.
“You remind me of that tree. You’ve been through storms, bent until you thought you’d break—but you didn’t.
You keep standing. You keep growing. And you’re softer for it, not harder.
That’s the part that gets me every time.
You’re the strongest man I know, and somehow the gentlest, too. ”
His eyes shine, and my stomach jolts like I just stepped off a ledge—terrified, weightless, and so damn sure I want to fall for him forever.
I drop to one knee and pull the small box from my pocket, flipping it open. His sharp inhale is loud in the quiet.
The platinum ring glints in the golden light, carved all the way around with tiny willow leaves.
“I know it’s not the usual choice,” I say with a nervous laugh.
“But I had it made for you. Strong, but beautiful. Gentle, but it’ll last forever.
” My voice thickens as I meet his gaze. “Like us. I know it’s only been a year, but, baby…
I’m ready for my forever with you.” I take a deep breath and gaze at the love of my life. “Gabe, will you marry me?”
Gabe just stares at me for a heartbeat. Then he drops to his knees in the grass, cupping my face in both hands, and kisses me. It isn’t rushed, it’s deep and drugging. I taste his tears on my lips and feel my own fall.
When he pulls back, his breath hitches, and I see the tears still clinging to his lashes.
“Yes,” he whispers first, then firmer, surer, “yes, Noah.”
He swallows, his hands still on my face, and his voice shakes.
“You changed everything,” he tells me. “When you moved in, I didn’t know how to let someone in, how to trust myself with people. I was struggling, and you never asked me to be anything except who I am. You made me want things I wasn’t sure I could ever have. You taught me that love can be safe.”
His thumbs brush my jaw, tears catching in the light.
“I want this life with you—all of it. The good days and the hard ones, Noah. I want forever.”
My throat feels raw as I slide the ring onto his finger with shaking hands, he looks down at it like it’s the most important thing he’s ever held.
He lets out a soft laugh, still gazing at the band on his finger with wonder. “Gabe Richards has a nice ring to it.”
Butterflies take flight in my stomach. “Actually… I was hoping you’d make me a Shaw?”
He leans forward and presses his forehead to mine—nodding slowly—his nose brushing mine with the movement, and I feel the curve of his broad smile against my mouth before he kisses me again.
“I think you were always meant to be a Shaw.”