from me to u... (book three - dalton)

chapter forty-three: the next day

"good morning, beautiful."

the sun peaked through the windows and bounced upon ariana's face, causing her eyes to flutter open. a warm, comforting arm was wrapped around her body, and when she glanced to her left, dalton was next to her - his nose nuzzling her neck before he kissed her shoulder. "i was waiting for you to wake up."

ariana smiled as she glanced into his eyes. "please tell me we didn't sleep in."

dalton chuckled and pulled her closer to his bare chest. "our flight isn't until the afternoon."

"forgive me for wanting to be punctual." ariana giggled in response, running her hand down his wrapped arm. "i didn't exactly plan on staying the night."

"i'm so glad you did." dalton whispered before rolling on top of her and locking their lips together. ariana moaned before gripping his hair with her hand. he ran his hand down her bare body, causing chills to roam all over her. dalton soon trailed his lips down her chin and onto her neck, leaving ariana breathless.

"me too... more than you think."

...

court knee
hello
hi
i need to talk to you
something happened and i feel like shit
earth to ariana
helloooo?
anyone awake?
ARIANA GRANDE-BUTERA!!!

ariana gran-dé
holy shit
i'm so sorry
i didn't see any of these! 🤦🏻‍♀️
i'm such an idiot

court knee
i have been TRYING to reach u since last night!!

ariana gran-dé
i feel so awful
my phone died and i was so tired that i forgot to charge it 😭

court knee
siiiiiiigh
well at least i know ur alive

ariana gran-dé
🥲😅
what did u wanna talk to me about tho? is everything ok?

court knee
that guy i told u about
the one that i had been talking to and hanging out with for the last few months
he... ghosted me
and i haven't heard from him in a whole week

ariana gran-dé
oh man...

court knee
i tried calling him
texting him
leaving messages
nothing

ariana gran-dé
men sometimes really ain't shit
and this is one of the worst/best examples
i'm really sorry bb

court knee
just get me drunk on the plane ride

ariana gran-dé
normally i'd be against that but i'm getting drunk too so absolutely 🥲😅😂

court knee
have u packed for our flight back home?

ariana gran-dé
mostly! just need to take care of a few more things

court knee
i'll swing by soon then

...

"who were you texting?" dalton asked after he came out of the hotel bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.

"court. just some personal stuff, and reminding me to pack everything for our flight back." ariana responded from the three-seater she had camped on while dalton was gone, smiling. she had a large white bathrobe on and a towel wrapped around her hair from her shower a while beforehand. "we have to leave in about four hours, but thankfully i don't have much left to do."

"well that's good news," dalton smirked as he headed towards ariana, eyes filled with the twinkle that she had seen last night which caused her heart to do somersaults. "now i have more time to do this."

before she knew it, dalton gently laid his lips onto ariana's as he placed one knee against the top of the sofa. ariana laid her phone to the side, lost in the kiss. she then wrapped her arms around his neck as he ran his hands down her hips. "did i tell you i love you?"

ariana nodded, kissing him again. "did i tell you i love you?"

dalton chuckled as he nodded as well. "i never thought i would hear those words from you... ever."

"i never thought you would feel that way about me... ever." ariana giggled as dalton took a seat next to her on the sofa. wrapping her arms around him and laying her head against his chest, dalton rested his own arm around her while kissing the top of her head. "i haven't been this happy since... since..."

"you don't have to say it. i understand." dalton reassured her, kissing her forehead and tightening his grip around her slightly. "i have never been this happy with my ex-girlfriend... at any point during our relationship, so you could say this is a new, but definitely incredible, feeling for me too."

ariana smiled as she looked up at dalton. "i love you."

dalton pressed his lips against ariana's for a brief moment. "i love you more."

they stayed in that comfortable, loving position for a while, enjoying each other's company, stealing sweet kisses and reminiscing about the journey they had together - from the moment they were introduced to each other to now. it felt as if the two of them grew into different people, but that was the important change they needed to make. evolution of character isn't an overnight fix.

"i didn't want to bring this up right away, but i should tell you..." ariana began to speak, tilting her head back again towards dalton. "i know that you're a private person, and i respect and appreciate that very much. so if you don't want me going public about us now or ever, i'm totally alright with it." ariana smiled, trying to reassure dalton of her genuine intentions. "the paparazzi might catch on since i'm stalked everywhere, but -

"hey, it's alright." dalton interrupted gently, running his hand down her back soothingly. "i honestly don't mind. you're fans are now part of my life, so whenever you're ready, i'd love to let them know about us."

ariana looked as if she was going to cry at any moment. "and on the topic of saying things i never thought you would say..."

dalton laughed, resting his head against the top of ariana's own head. "what about friends and family?"

ariana inhaled sharply. "that's... going to be one hell of a shock."

dalton looked down onto ariana, noticing the nervousness in her expression. "we could wait a while before we tell them?"

ariana nodded, fixing dalton a tighter squeeze with her arms wrapped around him. "and on the plus side, i get to keep you to myself with no one down our noses for a little while."

dalton smirked. "fair play, grande." and with those words, he gently pushed her down on the sofa, and kissed her once again, taking her taste in as if she was the most intoxicating and enchanting drug he had ever come across.