44. Sam
Sam
Sam rose and put his hand on her shoulder before she could leave.
He’d been letting her talk, to get it all out, but he’d already forgiven her from the second she entered the cave.
Because that’s what love was—seeing the person for the entirety of who they were, not only the good moments or the bad ones. All of them.
“Talia… if you had given me a chance when you kissed me, instead of rewinding right away, I would have kissed you back.” He sighed.
“I’ve loved you since you showed up at my door freshman year.
But I think my reaction time to your kiss was just a little delayed, since I’d been waiting for seventeen years. ”
She turned slowly to face him. She was crying a little now, but she braved a tentative smile. “Then you forgive me?”
“You had me at ‘I’ll buy you Taco Bell forever.’ ”
Talia laughed.
“Well,” Sam said, “are you going to kiss me or what?”
She looked at the watch on the sand. “Just one more thing.”