Chapter 8 - A City in the Rain“You love me?” she whispered, tears rising instantly in her eyes.
“I’ve loved you since the day we got that couch stuck in the stairwell,” I said, kneeling down on the floor right in front of her so we were eye to eye. “I loved your stupid notes on the fridge. I loved the way you laugh when things fall apart. I stayed quiet because I thought you needed a safe harbor, not another guy making demands on your life.”
Sophie leaned forward, placing both of her hands on the sides of my face, her thumbs gently tracing my cheekbones.
“Jack, you idiot,” she said, her voice breaking into a watery laugh. “I brought Nina here tonight because I was going crazy! I wanted to see if you’d get jealous. I wanted to see if you’d finally break that quiet, perfect composure and show me that you wanted me as much as I wanted you.”
“You didn’t need to bring a stranger into our living room to get my attention, Sophie,” I said, wrapping my hands around her waist. “You’ve had all of it. Every single day.”
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The distance between us collapsed.
When I leaned in and kissed her, it wasn't quiet, and it wasn't careful. It was fourteen months of unsaid words, late-night coffee, shared blankets, and unspoken longing coming together at once. She pulled me closer, her fingers tangling in my dark hair, her breath warm against my lips as she kissed me back with a fierce, desperate honesty.
