Livvie paced back and forth in the small cottage. He hadn’t given her any reason to trust him. She was attracted to him more than she had ever been attracted to any other man. He was hot, and she loved his dominating nature. She loved when he gave her orders and how his eyes changed according to his mood. She loved how intelligent he was and how he mentally stimulated her. She loved how she could talk about any subject with him, and he’d listen. But she didn’t trust him. And why would she? He hadn’t earned it. And both Liam and Zach had taught her that a man had to earn a woman’s trust. She never should have trusted either of them. And how could she trust Drake if he never wanted anything real with her?

Livvie sighed. These were questions she should be asking him. And if he answered them the way she wanted, would she suddenly be able to trust him? She honestly wasn’t sure. He never told her he’d commit to her. Every man was not Liam and Zach. And it wasn’t fair of her to put Drake in that category. Yes, he had his issues, but so did she. So did everyone.

Livvie stopped pacing like a maniac and sat in the comfy chair. She grabbed her cellphone and debated if she should text Drake and ask him the question that had been looming in her mind for a few weeks now, or if she should ask him in person. But every time she physically saw him, all she could think about was sex. Texting was the way to go.

Hi, Drake. It’s me.

She waited, practically begging the phone for Drake to respond. After the way he had left her standing in the entrance hall, she wasn’t sure he would answer. But then she saw the three dots, which implied he was typing. She sighed with relief.

Yes?? He responded.

Well, he wasn’t being warm and fuzzy, but at least he wasn’t ignoring her. Her fingers trembled while touching the keys. She had to ask him. It was crucial. She took a deep breath and then typed.

I saw you on the cover of a magazine with some blonde. Have you been with a woman since our expiration date?

There, she had sent it. It was a stupid question, since they weren’t sleeping together then, but it would make a difference. It would mean he was over her, and everything he had said today was a lie. When she saw the dots on her phone again, she froze, awaiting his answer.

Her name is Brittany. She’s been my go-to fuck for the last few years. But I didn’t fuck her. I tried, but I couldn’t.

What did he mean by that?

Because of me?

She immediately got a response.

Yes.

Livvie kept her fingers on the phone. She wanted to ask him more, but texting was the easy way out. She really wanted to tell him she was willing to trust him. So when she saw Drake was typing, the nerves in her stomach were going crazy.

Anything else? I can feel your mind thinking.

Livvie laughed. No. I’m good. Thank you.

She put down the phone and stared at her hands. Maybe coming here wasn’t such a good idea. Maybe she could never trust him, and he would never want a real relationship. Livvie looked at the beautiful cottage she was staying in. She wanted to trust him. She really did. And he hadn’t been with Brittany. Because of me…

Livvie sighed. Maybe she should go back to Los Angeles and write Veronica’s story from there. She picked up the phone to call her, but it went to voicemail. Why wasn’t she answering? Livvie groaned out of frustration. She was too stuck in her head, analyzing her life, and it was driving her crazy. With Veronica not answering her phone, there was only one thing left to do to calm herself down and think more clearly.

So she ran upstairs and opened her night table drawer. She pulled out her journal—the one with the story she was writing about Blake and Haley. Just one more scene to write. How should they end? Happy ever after or break up forever?

She sat on the bed and leaned against the headboard. Grabbing the pen Drake had given her, she started to write her idea of the perfect ending.

Haley had her bags packed, and she was rolling them out of the cabin.

“So that’s it? You’re leaving without saying goodbye?” Blake was walking up from the lake when he saw her. His expression was grim.

She’d hurt him. She could see it in his beautiful eyes, but she was hurting, too.

“You said we’d be together for the week, and then that’s it. We were through. Done.”

Blake ran his hands through his hair. “But that was before I fell in love with you.”

A tear slid down Haley’s face. “You’re leaving, too, Blake. You have a full life in Raleigh, and I have a full life in New York. How are we ever going to work?”

Blake ran up to her and grabbed her shoulders. She could feel her entire body heat up from his touch. She wanted him, and she was about to leave. It didn’t make sense. None of this made sense.

“Do you trust me?” he asked.

Haley looked deep into his eyes. He had told her that after this week, they wouldn’t be together, and now he seemed to have changed his mind.

“Do you want us to be together still? Have a long-distance relationship?” she asked him.

Another tear slid down her cheek, and Blake caught it with his thumb and placed it in his mouth, which was almost as intimate as when they made love.

“You didn’t answer me. Do you trust me?”

She didn’t even have to think a minute before she answered. “I trust you with my life,” she said softly.

Blake grabbed her and held her as if their lives depended on it. She didn’t want to lose him. She loved him so much.

“Then we will make this work.” He kissed her head and held her tighter.

“How?” she whispered. Long-distance relationships worked at the beginning, but in her experience, as time went on, it became more difficult.

He stopped hugging her but grabbed her hands instead. “Marry me.”

“Marry you?”

“Marry me. Move to Raleigh. I have plenty of money to support us.”

“Why won’t you move to New York?”

His eyes became more intense as he looked at her.

“If you want to stay in New York, I will. Just marry me, and I’ll move tomorrow.”

“You will?” she whispered again.

“Yes, I love you.”

Haley thought about it. She hated New York. Living in Manhattan wasn’t easy, and the winters were awful. And she had loved this week at the cabin with open spaces and clean air. But most of all, she loved Blake.

“I’d rather move to North Carolina. So yes, I’ll marry you.”

She watched the tension leave Blake’s face but not completely.

“But do you trust me? Do you trust that I’ll always be there for you, no matter what? Do you trust how much I love you? I promise you I’ll do my best to never hurt you. At times I will, unintentionally, but if we communicate with each other, we’ll always work through it.”

Haley grabbed the sides of his face and gave him a kiss.

“Yes, Blake. I trust you with my life.”

Blake looked at her with intense love. Then he picked her up and kissed her with passion, and most of all with love. Nothing in life was ever a guarantee, but Haley was convinced that their love could survive anything.

Livvie put down the pen as tears flowed down her cheeks. She wanted to have the courage Haley had. And she wanted Drake to be like Blake and do whatever it took to be with her.

Exhausted, Livvie leaned back and closed her eyes. Maybe she would get her happy ending, too. But before she succumbed to sleep, she opened her eyes and looked at Drake’s bedroom window in his castle.

“I love you, Drake. I really do.” She closed her eyes again and heard her journal fall onto the floor. She would pick it up later, and maybe then she’d put her fears behind her and tell Drake that if he took a leap of faith, she would trust him.