Leaning in, she cups his chin. “I fucking love you, you asshole.”
He groans and kisses her hard. “I love you too, you stubborn brat.”
Pulling away, she looks at Bray. “I love you too, Bray. I promise never to leave again. You’re all stuck with me for life.”
“Thank God.” He grins. “Who else would bully Cyrus with me?”
“Or be my muse?” I tip her chin up and kiss her softly. “I love you, my perfect painting.”
Bray sits next to her, turning her head and kissing her also. “I love you forever, even when you steal all the covers.”
She laughs, smacking his chest as he kisses her before blowing a raspberry on her cheek. “Now, let Cyrus go make us some dinner and we can be lazy as fuck together.”
“Why me?” he demands.
Bray leans in and whispers something to her. She turns to Cyrus, pouting. “Please, Cy, I’m hungry.”
His eyes narrow, and he points at Bray. “I know what you’re doing. The only reason it’s working is because she’s so fucking cute.” He grumbles all the way to the kitchen. Bray, Blair, and I share a look before bursting out laughing.
After kissing her again and forcing her to say she loves him, Bray gets up to put on a movie as I snuggle closer to her. She smiles softly at me, and her eyes sparkle in happiness. She’s never looked so fucking beautiful. I don’t need a painting or a pencil to capture this moment. I’ll remember the moment my girl told me she loved me and would be with me forever for the rest of my life.
“I love you forever,” I murmur, stroking her cheek. She leans into the touch, closing her eyes.
“I love you,” she promises.
* * *
Bray
I can’t stop asking her to tell me she loves me again. The sweet, patient way she says it has my once broken heart healed and better than before. Blair put us all back together again and made us better versions of ourselves, but more than that, she loves the broken parts of us just as much. She lives in the shadows with us. She laughs, she cries, and she celebrates. Most of all? She settled right into our family. Before, there was a hole, and we know now it was for her.
She’s feeling stronger the next day, so we do a workout together. She seems sad and didn’t sleep well, but when I ask her about it, she tells me she’s okay. After working out, where she got sweaty from something else other than typical exercise, she sits with us at the table while Asher draws, Cyrus works, and I watch her.
Suddenly, her voice splits the air. “I’m ready.”
Asher’s and Cyrus’s heads lift in unison, and they blink in confusion, but I know what she means, so I grab my phone.
“I’m ready to talk to the police,” she explains.
Cyrus sighs, but I’ve already sent the message. “Okay, we’ll be here the whole time. Remember, if you feel uncomfortable, we will end it.”
“Okay, I’d like for you to be there with me,” she says, reaching for our hands. “Once I do... It’s just finally over, you know? I can finally move on. I can finally be free... with you.”
“You don’t have to explain yourself to us,” I inform her with a smile. “But we are glad you did. Let’s get this over with and then you can show Asher that thing you just did to me with your tongue.” I wink as he grins.
“Tongue, huh? Well, shit. Are you sure we need to talk to the cops now?” He stands, and she laughs, which is why he did it.
It doesn’t take the police long to arrive. We sit at the table, all three of us near Blair, as they ask her questions and take a statement. I can sense their nerves as their eyes dart to us every time they ask a question that might potentially upset her. They know the sway we have and don’t want to risk their jobs, but we understand they are doing what they need to, and unless Blair says so, we will allow her to handle it.
“Only a few more questions, Miss... Crew.” The older gentleman coughs. “Did you ever encourage or interact with Mr. Andrews outside of what was explained?”
“No,” she snaps angrily.
“I have another question, just one more, I promise,” the younger woman next to him asks. “Did he truly kill himself?”
She sits up taller, her expression unchanging. “He did, once he realised he couldn’t have me.”
She nods, rolling her lips in. “Figured as much, he was crazy.” She stands then, shaking Blair’s hand. “Thank you for your time and honesty. Again, we are truly sorry this ever happened, and I would personally like to apologise for the failing of the police force—”