“I am so afraid of loving bigger than myself. In a way that I can’t control. But I do. With you. It’s so all-consuming and huge. And it has been all this time. And I could never let you be my everything, Ryder, because I was sure that that would destroy me. But it won’t because of you. That was what I was missing. That I needed to trust you. Trust us. I asked for love once and it was like looking into a black abyss. But you offered it to me without me ever having to ask. And more important, you’ve shown me what love looks like all these years. I was just afraid to call it what it was.”

She took a sharp, jagged breath that cut her open, and she bled her heart out before him. Let it flow like a river. “I was afraid of giving myself over to something. But freedom...real freedom is this. Not letting the past decide how loud we get to live and how big we get to love. Real freedom is living, and not just hiding. And that’s what I want. Not just life, but this life.”

“Did I catch you communing with nature?” he asked, his grin lopsided.

“I was being vulnerable,” she said, taking a step toward him.

“I got you.” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest, and she felt enveloped by his strength. Free to be as soft as she needed to be because of him. Because he was the kind of man whose hands were there to hold her. To cradle their baby. Whose muscles would only ever be used to protect. And never to harm.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“I wanted you to know,” he said. “I got a coaching job.”

She tilted her head up and looked at him. “You did?”

“Yes. And it’s because of you. All the things we went through to get to this moment. Painful or not. So I don’t need you to apologize to me. We both had some work to do. Because you were right. There were things I needed to address. I am happy. I want you to know that. I’ve spent years being happy because of the family we’ve had here. And you are part of that. Not shoved in here stitched in sloppy, not an afterthought, but a key thread that holds us together. That held me together. I told you. You’ve been my light. My warmth. Don’t ever underestimate the power of that. Cold kills you. Darkness makes you insane. The sun is the source of life. You protected me all this time. Don’t think you didn’t. Don’t make the mistake of believing that I somehow was the one protecting you.”

“I guess we were just what each other needed,” she said softly. “I needed to hide in your shadow, and you needed some light.”

“I like that,” he said.

“I love you,” she whispered. “I have loved you all this time.”