2.8 | Miles Away

0 | Miles to Go (II)

0

M I L E S   T O   G O

(part two)

THE FIRST TIME he kisses her comes as a surprise.

They've already kissed before and, each time, he'd let her lead. She's the one with experience, after all, and she knows the perfect angles, pressure and moments to kiss.

This time, however, is different.

He closes the gap to capture her lips, which wrenches a gasp out of her. Immediately, she sinks into it, sliding her fingers through his hair to pull him close. Darcy Evers kisses the way she does anything else she's passionate about—with heart and soul and every fibre of her being thrown into it.

But he keeps it slow and sweet, gentle sucks and teasing bites and languid slides of his tongue against hers. Their conversation mere minutes ago echoes in his mind—

"Trust me when I say this," she'd said. "You are going someplace else, you are becoming someone amazing, you are you and no one else."

—and he tries to convey his response through this kiss.

All I am is because of you.

*

THE FIRST TIME he confesses he loves her is unnecessary because she already knows.

They're in the parking lot of the cemetery and she's gazing up at sky. She blinks rapidly as raindrops fall into her face, but doesn't once shy away from the drizzle. He stares at her—this brilliant, fearless girl who's given him the courage to drop out of Corvus and visit his brother's grave—and takes a deep breath.

"I love you," he says quietly.

She blinks again, then turns to look at him. "I know that."

"I–I just thought...well, in case you had any doubt, I wanted to make sure you did."

"I do." She reaches up on the tips of her toes and draws his face to hers, so that he can feel her mouth move against his. "I love you too, Miles, so very much."

He closes his eyes and kisses her deeply, with everything he has within him.

Thank you for loving me.

*

THE FIRST TIME he thinks of a future with her is the night they sleep together.

Still shaking in the aftermath, he buries his face against her neck and breathes her in. Sea salt and wild flowers—her scent, his aphrodisiac. Her hands slide through his hair, down his back, and he almost grows hard again at the feel of her fingers dancing on his skin. He twitches, she moans, and he looks up.

"You didn't...?"

"I don't care," she murmurs. "I don't need to—not now, anyway. You're wonderful."

He leans in to kiss her hard, bruising, until she's clutching at him. This might be his first time, but he'll be damned if he leaves her unsatisfied. He slides a hand down her breast, to her hip, to between her thighs, and lifts his head to look right at her.

"Teach me, then," he breathes. "Teach me how to please you."

I'll spend the rest of my life learning how.

*

THE FIRST TIME he makes her cry is inevitable.

A quiet sob escapes her as he's about to get her a coffee refill. He glances over, but her head is still lowered as she folds his shirts. He watches her until the slow burn in his chest intensifies to a sharp ache, and he can no longer stop the words from tumbling out.

"Tell me to stay and I will."

She looks up, her cheeks stained with fresh tears, and scrubs a hand across her face. "I want you to stay," she says. "But even more than that, I want you to go. I know how much you need to get out of Caverly, and how much of a brilliant future you'll have when you do."

Cradling her face between his hands, he kisses her, tasting coffee and tears on her lips. He will go. He'll leave Caverly, he'll see the world, he'll make a future for himself—because she wants him to.

I'll do anything you want me to.

*

THE FIRST TIME he leaves her is the hardest thing he's ever done.

He looks at her—memorizing everything, forgetting nothing. Her small frame seems swallowed whole by his jacket, her curly hair almost golden under the sunlight, and her feet are bare save for her flip-flops and the baby-blue anklet he'd given her last Christmas.

He doesn't dare to meet her eyes, because if he does, he'll never leave.

Instead, he wraps his arms around her and pulls her close. "I won't be gone long," he whispers, his lips brushing the shell of her ear. "I'll come back before you know it."

A silent sob wracks through her body, and her own arms come up around his waist, her hands fisting into his shirt. "Okay," she says quietly. "You know where to find me."

"I know, and I will."

I promise.