Chapter 14
Fourteen
Eighteen Years Earlier
“Bronwyn!” A pause. “Bronwyn! Are you here?”
Bronwyn watched from her hiding spot behind a mountain laurel. Mo would find her soon enough, but it was fun to play with him. At fifteen, hide-and-seek hadn’t been part of their time together in a long while. But they hadn’t seen each other in a week.
They met at Catherine’s Falls whenever they could, and she usually waited for him on their favorite rock.
But sometimes they played this game because she liked watching him.
Liked hearing him call for her. There was hope and longing and maybe something that someday might be love in the way he said her name. So she held perfectly still and waited.
“Bronwyn Elena Elizabeth Pierce! I know you’re here.” Mo was laughing as he walked past her hiding spot. She let him get two feet away, then she moved. She’d planned to jump on his back, but he turned and she wound up in his arms instead, their faces centimeters apart.
Their eyes met.
Held.
“Hi.” His voice had deepened and sometimes, like now, when he spoke, it was more rumble than word.
She didn’t mind.
“Hi.” She brushed her nose against his and tried not to let her disappointment show when he bent down until her feet hit the earth. She expected him to release her. Maybe he’d keep her hand. But he didn’t move.
“I missed you.” The words were a gift. The tone, a promise.
“I missed you too.” Why was she struggling to catch her breath?
His hand came up and cradled her cheek. “Bronwyn?”
“Mm?”
“Could I, I mean, would you mind . . .” His voice faltered, and a hint of red stole up his neck. He cleared his throat. “I’d really like to kiss you.”
“Okay.”
He caught his breath. “Are you sure? You only get one first kiss.”
“So do you.”
They stared at each other, the crashing of the waterfall drowning out all other sounds. Standing this close to him, she could feel his heartbeat.
His thumb brushed her cheek, and she rose onto her toes. “I’m sure, Mo.”
It was soft, sweet, and entirely without finesse. Neither of them had any idea what they were doing.
And it didn’t matter.
He pulled away after far too short a time. “Can we do that again?”
She lifted her hands and wrapped them around his neck. “Yes.”
This kiss was as tender as the first but more confident. “Bronwyn?” Mo whispered when he pulled away. “I know we can’t tell anyone ’cause your parents would flip out. So in public, we’ll just be friends. But when it’s just you and me, will you be my girlfriend?”
She didn’t tell him that she’d already thought she was. Maybe he’d thought so too but wanted to make it official.
Either way, her answer was easy. “Yes.”
His smile was a little bit triumphant. “Does this mean you’re mine?”
“I’ve always been yours.”