Chapter Eleven
That was just the beginning of what I felt like might be the rest of my life. Suddenly, being sent away to this cabin in the woods didn’t feel like a punishment at all. Ryan wasn’t a nuisance anymore. I actually wanted to be with him; I wanted to spend all of my days with him.
We didn’t waste any time catching up; we both knew we had a lot of lost time to make up for. We spent our days being tourists. Neither of us had spent much time in Gatlinburg, despite the fact that we were both Tennessee natives. Our families didn’t really have the time for vacations. We were always moving around with the gang.
It was nice to just relax for once and not worry about the gang or our families. Every once in a while I would remind myself as to why we were here, but a quick phone call home eliminated all of my worries. Damien was keeping a close eye on the men after me and there hadn’t been any news in a long time. They were starting to think that maybe, just maybe it was almost safe for me to come home. Maybe it really had just been an unorganized attempt at my life.
Ryan didn’t want me focusing on that. He wanted me to stop thinking about all the politics for once and actually enjoy my life. It sounded nice, it really did, and when I finally let myself relax and focus on the fun and on Ryan, I actually started to laugh and smile.
We were walking through the small strip of shops in Pigeon Forge and Ryan was smiling at me. It was a strange kind of dreamy smile that gave me butterflies and made me blush.
“Can I help you?” I murmured, putting my hands on my hips.
“I certainly hope so,” he purred, pulling me closer and brushing some hair out of my eyes.
I blushed and looked away, but he just pressed a kiss to my cheek. I let out a surprised little squeak and tried to squirm away from him. He laughed and just held me tighter. “I don’t think so, ma’am,” he purred. “I let you get away once, I’m not going to let you go again.”
My cheeks burned ever hotter and I had to cover my face to hide the bright grin. “Why do you always say things like that?!”
He laughed and pulled away a little, thought he didn’t release me, just like he promised. “Should I stop?”
I hesitated and looked up at him and then away. “Well, no. It’s just, I don’t know. I don’t know how to handle all those feelings,” I admitted almost shyly.
He placed his hand under my chin and made me look up. “It’s because you’ve never had to,” he pointed out, smiling down at me.
That serene, knowing smile made my entire body heat up. My eyes widened and I swallowed, looking away for a moment. “It makes me feel stupid.”
“What makes you feel stupid?”
“The fact that I can’t process all of this. I feel stunted,” I murmured softly, looking up at him again. “Women my age have usually had all of these romantic experiences and here I am, completely unsure how to handle all this mushy stuff.”
He chuckled and took my hand, tugging me towards a very large Ferris wheel. The seats were encased in little orbs of glass and it was much larger than anything I’d ever seen before. It looked similar to pictures of the London Eye that I’d seen.
Ryan paid the operator and we got in the glassed in seats. I sat opposite of him and he stood up, crossing the small space and settling in beside me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
“You shouldn’t feel bad or stunted,” he said softly. “Our lives have been very different from most normal people’s. It seems only natural that we would experience things differently too.”
I nodded as the great wheel groaned and started to move. The sky line came into view and it actually took my breath away. I reached out and took his free hand, tangling my fingers in his.
“Thank you, Ryan.”
“For what?”
“For everything you say and do.”
“I don’t think I really do much.”
I cocked a brow and leaned into him. “In the weeks that we’ve been here, you’ve gotten me to open up more than I ever have before,” I murmured, closing my eyes.
He smiled a little and looked down at me. “Well, it’s only because if we’re going to fall in love, I want it to be like it used to be. I want it to be easy. Natural.”
I pulled away and looked up at him. “Fall in love?” I almost whispered.
It was his turn to go pink. I’d never seen this man blush in my life, but now here he was, lighting up the skyline. “Well, yeah. Isn’t that the goal of dating and shit? To fall in love?”
I leaned over him and reached up, cupping his cheeks. “I suppose it is,” I murmured.
He turned to look at me and as I gazed into his eyes I felt vulnerable. I expected the fear to follow, but it never turned to fear. Soon I realized that vulnerable wasn’t the word for what I was feeling. I felt free. I felt like I could conquer the world. My breath hitched him my throat and a grin started to spread across my lips.
“Are you okay?” he asked, sounding almost nervous.
“I’m better than okay,” I whispered, pulling him closer.
“You’re lookin’ at me like you’re going to try and eat me.”
I burst out laughing and shook my head back and forth. “No, not at all. I just realized something.”
“Yeah? What is that?”
I put my forehead to his and smiled, pressing my lips to his very tenderly. “I realized just how free I am. When I’m with you I don’t have to try and be something I’m not,” I whispered. “You want me to be exactly who I am and nothing else.”
“Well, of course I do,” he murmured. “I was so enamored with you back then. When we were kids, I mean. It was because you weren’t like any of the other girls. You were wild and loud and you were always covered in dirt,” he said with a laugh. “That’s what I liked about you.”
I smiled and listened to the sweet words, my heart threatening to burst from my chest, “Really?” I asked.
“Really.”
I chuckled and smiled. “I used to like the way you pulled my braids and teased me. I liked that you didn’t treat me any differently from your boy friends. It was nice to feel equal.”
Ryan snorted. “I would rather have you on my team than any of the guys in the gang. You’re one of the most amazing shots I’ve ever met. And you’re the most amazing woman, by far,” he said with a grin.
I looked up into his eyes. “Can I admit something?” I whispered.
“Of course,” he said quickly, his voice taking on a serious tone. “Anything.”
“I think I’ve already fallen in love with you,” I whispered, my eyes wide.
He sucked in a breath and for a moment I was afraid he might push me out of the orb or break up with me. Honestly, though, out of those two options, I think I’d rather he just throw me out of the Ferris wheel.
His shocked expression turned to one of absolute glee and he laughed, throwing his arms around me. “I love you too!”
I just sat there for a moment, shocked by his words. “What?”
“I love you! I thought it was too soon to tell you!”
A sudden bark of laughter forced its way from my chest and I held him tight. “Of course it’s not too soon,” I whispered, kissing his face all over.
“Really?”
I pulled away and cupped his cheeks. “We’ve been falling in love since we were kids. If anything, we’re overdue.”
Something about that statement seemed to resonate with him. His eyes widened just a moment, and he smiled, pressing his lips to mine. My heart jumped into my throat as I returned the kiss.
“I love you,” he whispered when we parted.
“And I love you.”
We stayed there, frozen in time as the sun basked us in warmth. It was like everything fell away and all the existed or ever would exist was in his eyes. The warmth of his breath soothed my soul and we just sat there, whispering ‘I love you’ back and forth until the sun started to descend toward the horizon.
It was perfection and I never wanted the moment to end.