He took one step toward her. And then another. And then he opened his arms, and she flew into them.

“I love you so much,” he said, she said, they said.

He brushed her hair back from her face and kissed her. She pulled him closer and kissed him back. The tears fell from her eyes onto his cheeks.

“Are you sure?” he asked. “If you’re feeling guilty, or something, I don’t—”

She put her finger against his lips and looked him in the eye.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” she said.

 

* * *

 

—

Anna took his hand and led him into his bedroom. She plucked the bottom of his shirt out of his jeans and pulled it up over his head. He reached for her, but she stopped him, so he stood there and watched her. She unbuckled his belt, unzipped his jeans, and let them drop to the floor. She kissed his collarbone, his shoulders, his arms, his chest. She ran her hands over his body, memorizing what it felt like, even though she hadn’t forgotten a single thing about him.

Finally, she dropped her hoodie to the floor. He reached for her again, and this time she gloried in it. In the way he undressed her, touched her, looked at her, kissed her, laughed with her, loved her.

Afterward, they lay together in bed. Kissing, touching, talking.

“That charity thing that you suggested—I’m doing it,” she told him. “I did an interview talking about it. It was really . . . hard. But I think it’s going to be good.”

He kissed her softly on the lips.

“I read that interview. I tried not to, but I couldn’t help myself. I was—I am—so proud of you.”

She smiled.

“I was pretty proud of me, too.”

He dropped his head back on the pillow.

“I told Theo about Dawn. We’re going to meet her soon. It’s all still so weird for me. But I’m glad I told him.”

She smiled at him.

“I’m glad, too.”

She intertwined her fingers with his and lifted their hands to kiss his.

She couldn’t believe she was here, with him, for real this time. She was so happy.

She was about to say that out loud, when he bit his lip.

“Shit. I should be at work. Right now. Hold on.”

He jumped out of bed, grabbed his phone, and typed busily with his thumbs.

“There.”

He dropped his phone and got back into bed with her.

“Do I get you all to myself today?” She kissed him softly. “What should we do?”

That wicked grin she loved so much spread across his face.

“How about a road trip?”

Epilogue

On Saturday morning, Anna sat in the back seat of Theo’s car, Ben’s arm around her, her head tucked into his chest. It felt like they’d barely let go of each other in the past week. Now that they were together, for real, all they wanted was to be together.

Monday, they’d jumped into Ben’s car and had driven down to Anna’s house in L.A. The whole drive down there they’d talked and laughed and cried and talked more—about everything that had happened in their lives in the past few weeks they hadn’t gotten to tell each other, about how hard those weeks had been on both of them, about what Simon had said, about what Theo had said, about how and when they’d each realized they’d fallen in love. Ben had flown back up to San Francisco Tuesday morning and Anna joined him there Wednesday night. They were going to fly back down to L.A. late Saturday night, so they could drive Ben’s car back up the next day.

They hadn’t—quite—figured out what the next few months would look like for the two of them. She was going to start filming soon, he had this new ad campaign he was working on, they both knew they wouldn’t be able to be together this much. But somehow, they both knew they’d make it work.

Now they were on their way up to Sacramento, so Ben and Theo could meet Dawn. Anna and Maddie were coming along for moral support. From the tense look on Ben’s face that morning, he needed it.

“What are you and Maddie going to do while you wait for us?” he asked her.

She laughed.

“We’re going shopping. There are apparently a handful of boutiques nearby that Maddie’s been dying to go to for a while. I’m excited to see what she finds.”

He nodded. That tense look was still on his face.

“Nervous?” she said to him in a low voice.

He started to shake his head and then stopped himself.

“Yeah. I . . . I just want her to like me. I feel bad, about blowing her off before. And I’ve never had a sister; I don’t know how to . . . I don’t know, I’m probably making a bigger deal about this than I should be, but—”

“No,” she said.

He smiled down at her.

“No?”

“No, you’re not making a bigger deal about this than you should be.” She reached for his hand. “Don’t feel bad. Her email back to you was so nice. And of course she’ll like you. Even Simon likes you.”

He laughed.

“That might be overstating it a little.”

She laughed, too.

“Only a little. But you won over both of my parents last night, which FYI is not easy.”

He grinned at her.

“Well, that was different. All I had to do was sing their daughter’s praises, which comes very naturally to me.”

It had been so good to be with Ben at her parents’ house, to see him talking and laughing with her parents and her brother. It had felt right.

He leaned down and kissed her on the cheek.

“Thank you. For coming with me today. It’s really good to have you here.”

She felt herself tear up again, just by that sound in his voice and the tender look on his face.

“It’s really good to be here for you,” she said.

He traced her lips with his finger.

“You make me very happy,” he said. “Do you know that?”

She squeezed his hand.

“I know. I love you.”

Theo cleared his throat.

“Ahem.”

They looked up. They were stopped at a light, with Theo and Maddie grinning at them. Anna blushed, but Ben just grinned back.

“Yes?” he said to his brother.