I can only nod, my throat too thick with emotion to answer.
"So I started thinking about what you said when you left. I tried to put myself in your shoes so I could understand why you did it. And I realized that everything you said that night was right, even if I didn't want to hear it. Even though it killed me to hear that I was broken and needed to heal, you told me anyway. Because you knew I needed to heal, and to do it myself." She hesitates for a moment. And her voice cracks when she asks, "You did it because you love me, didn't you?"
My gaze darts across her face, searching for her reaction to those words. But she doesn't give me anything, just watches me and waits.
I can only nod mutely.
A heavy exhale rushes out of her, as if she was waiting with bated breath for me to confirm what she suspected. Then one corner of her lips lifts into a small smile, though it looks sad.
"I know it hurt you to do that," she finally whispers. "But I want you to know that you were right. About everything. You were right about me, and you were right to make me deal with it on my own. I may have never dealt with my problems if I had you there to lean on. So I wanted to thank you. Because without that wake-up call, I might still be broken."
When she leans forward to press a kiss to my cheek, my eyes close and my heart splinters into unfixable pieces. This feels like closure.
This feels like goodbye.
She pulls back. "You saved me," she admits softly. "You forced me to deal with the pieces of me that I wanted to bury deep and forget about. I had to take those pieces and figure out why they were hurting me, and then make changes so they wouldn't hurt me again. I started saying no to people. I started dancing again. I even took a trip by myself. I learned how to make my happiness a priority." She cups my cheek in her hand, her eyes searching mine. "But I never would've done that without you. And I don't think I can ever thank you enough for that. But—" Her shield drops and raw vulnerability shines through her bright blue eyes. "I'd like to spend the rest of our lives trying." Her voice cracks when she says, "If you'll have me."
My eyes widen. I thought this was her way of getting closure and officially breaking things off with me, but those words make it sound like—
"You want to be with me?" I manage to choke out. I clear my throat and try again. "I mean, do we go back to being friends or—"
She's shaking her head before I've even finished. "I can't be your friend anymore, Jax." She trains her honest gaze on me again. "I love you too much to settle for just friends."
A breath whooshes out of me, and I can't go another second without touching her. I barely manage to get out a whisperedHaileybefore I'm cupping her face in my hands and pulling her to me.
The second our lips touch, it feels like my very soul has been brought back to life. Her whimper only feeds the sparks in my chest, her hands making mefeelagain as she clings to me, completely uncaring about the fact that my shirt is drenched from my workout. She presses against me like she can’t bear even an inch of space between us, like she can’t go another second without recapturing the intimacy that was always so fucking easy between us.
I wrap an arm around her waist, my other hand still woven into her hair, and I lift her off her feet to bring her even closer. I deepen the kiss in borderline-frenzy—I can’t get enough of her, can’t get close enough. Can’t quite convince myself that this is real, that she’s here in my arms and wanting me back.
After what feels like forever, but at the same time not long enough, I force myself to pull away, but only far enough to separate our lips. I lean my forehead against hers, my eyes closing as I struggle to catch my breath.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper. She opens her mouth to interrupt but I cut her off, desperate to get the words out. “I know you’ll tell me I don’t need to be, but I just need to say it. I’m sorry I hurt you.God,I’m so sorry. It killed me to do it. But you have to know that I’ll never hurt you, ever again. I swear. I’d rather cut my own arm off than be the cause of even one more tear in your eye.” I pull back farther to study her expression, and to make sure that she’s hearing my words. “Tell me you believe me. Please.”
For a moment she just looks at me, and I can’t help but be mesmerized by the change in her. There’s not a shred of insecurity in her gaze right now. She’s just standing here, sure of herself, sure of her decision. A decision that she made on her own based on her own needs.
“I believe you,” she says quietly. “Of course I believe you. You’re my Jax.”
Andfuck,what hearing my name on her lips does to me.
With a groan, I fall onto her with my kiss again. After three months, I can’t get enough of her scent, of her taste, of the feel of her in my arms. I’m obsessed.
“I love you,” I whisper against her lips. “I love you so much…”
I feel her smile against my mouth, and the knowledge that she’s happy is enough to send me into a frenzy again. And in this moment, I vow to only ever make her smile again.
I force myself to pull away and put a little distance between us, although I can’t bring myself to actually let go of her. “Let’s get out of here. The next time you tell me you love me, I want to be inside you immediately. I’m not exactly keen on the idea of fucking you against a heavy bag.”
She laughs, and I swear to God I missed that sound more than anything in the world. But she also has a twinkle in her eye because she looks at me and whispers, “I do love you, you know.” She says it with a grin, seeing if I’ll go against what I just said and take her right here, right now.
I growl and reach under her thighs to wrap her legs around my body. And as tempted as I am to actually fuck her against a heavy bag, I’m more interested in getting her home.
“Naughty,” I murmur as I nip at her neck. “You’ve become more mischievous.” Without setting her down, I start to make my way up the stairs and through the gym.
“A few things have changed,” she admits softly.
I just look up at her with a smile, silently letting her know that I’m excited to navigate those new waters with her—that I’ll take her however she is, now and forever.
“I’m taking you home,” I tell Hailey as I set her down to change my shirt and grab my gym bag.