“You said I’m good at everything, remember? I’m not, Cassia. I’m terrible at a lot of things, and I’m especially bad at this.” He gestures between us, then tucks a stray piece of hair that’s fallen out of my ponytail behind one ear. “You’re easy to love. I’m just…really bad at loving.”

“But…do you? Love me?”

It was one thing to read it. Another to look at him while he says it. “Yeah. I love you, Cassia.”

The water in my eyes starts to overflow, dribbling down my face in thin streams. He brushes one tear away with his thumb. “Can I kiss you?”

“You’ve never asked for permission before,” I say.

And then I kiss him. It’s punishing and bruising. Desperate and deep.

But then something shifts. His mouth opens, his tongue tangles with mine. Holden is kissing me like I’m oxygen and water combined—like I’m something he can’t live without. Like he’s desperate for it and miserable without it.

Like he used to.

When he pulls away, he grabs my hand. And then we walk off the court.

Together.

EPILOGUE

HOLDEN

“Stop smiling.” Mark says.

My grin stretches my cheeks.

Finn rolls his eyes. “It wasn’t that good of a shot.”

It was, though. I celebrate by raising my cold can of beer in a cheers motion before taking a sip.

Jordan takes his turn. We’re playing a version of H-O-R-S-E with more letters. S-E-N-I-O-R-S. It seemed fitting, considering we graduated high school today. As of midnight, we’ll be kicked back to freshman status.

I glance across the yard, scanning the faces gathered round. Finally, I find her.

Cassia stares straight at me. Her hair is down and loose, brown curls falling over the green t-shirt she’s wearing. She smiles. Mouths good shot before Sydney says something and steals her attention away.

I resist the urge to walk over to her. The guys would give me shit for it, but I don’t care about that. I want her to have time with Sydney. Come fall, she and I will be leaving for Richmond together. I got a full ride offer and so did she.

There were other schools she got into too. More prestigious schools. But she chose Richmond, and I’m not sure how to convey to her how much that matters to me.

My dad’s younger sister, Catherine, requested a remote work option. She’s moving to Pembrooke in September and will be staying with Sydney through her senior year, so she’s not all alone and is able to finish high school in the same town.

Sometimes it seems silly, how much time I spent worrying about the future and all that could go wrong.