“Well, I’m not sorry. Not for any of it. You know it’s…” I shook my head “…ironic. Adults, real adults, like to lecture young adults like me. They like to paint this picture of hopes and dreams, endless possibilities, and constantly remind us that we can do anything, be anything. But that’s a lie. Because all I wanted was to live a day at a time and figure things out one moment at a time. That’s all I wanted to do. And all I wanted to be was yours.” After a quick shrug, I rolled my eyes toward the sky to ward off the tears. “I don’t want your apologies or your help because they don’t get me you.”

He said nothing. Not a word. Not a single muscle in his body moved. Defeat personified.

“I’m going to fall in love. And some guy will be lucky to have me. He’ll love me for me. And he won’t care where I’ve been or where I’m going. He’ll just feel so fucking lucky to be the one who kisses me goodnight and wakes up in the morning with me in his arms. He won’t be burdened by my virginity or aggravated that I don’t wear socks with my sneakers. He will be a better man for having found me, and I will be a better woman for having found him. I know they say love is patient, but it’s not. Love is the brightest star in the sky. It doesn’t have an off switch or a timer. It doesn’t wear a watch or look at a calendar. It’s why we’re here. It’s the only true reason for our existence.”

Fisher was good at taking punches. He didn’t duck or even wince. He swallowed every word and let it settle somewhere deep inside of his mind, his heart, maybe his soul. And if he felt unsteady or even a pang of discomfort, I never knew.

“I have to go.”

He smiled ever so slightly. “Have a safe trip.”

I returned a single nod and climbed into my car. Then, I made it a full three blocks before I cried all the tears.

It was him. He was the someday guy.

The kiss goodnight. It was him.

Waking in the morning in his arms.

It felt like I would forever carry a Fisher-shaped mold around with me, trying to shove other men into a place they would never fit.

The wrong key.

The wrong piece to a puzzle.

I was destined to settle and that sucked.

Chapter Thirty

The worst part about late flights? When they were canceled for mechanical issues, it meant a night in the airport or, in my case, a trip home only to wake up five hours later and drive back to the airport for an early flight.