There Goes My Heart (The Sullivans #20) - Bella Andre Page 0,88
tightrope I’ve been teetering on since I was fourteen. I believe that I’m finally ready to do what my mother would have wanted for me all along and let myself laugh again, and have fun, and dream, and hope for the future. I believe that you’re the only person who could have been sure enough of himself to prove to me that I am lovable. And…I also believe that the two of us are magic.”
“Go ahead,” he teased. “I know you’ve been dying to say it from the moment you climbed up here.”
Grinning, she stepped out of his arms to wave the wand. “Abracadabra!”
“Only the best damned magician in the world would have been able to steal my heart every single day since we first met.”
She stepped back into his arms and wound her own around his neck. “I also believe that I need to be realistic this time. Like you, I wanted so badly for our love, and the joy I feel with you, to make everything better. To heal every broken part of me. But I’ve finally realized that it’s not going to be that easy. I’ve been stuck with these storm clouds for long enough that I’m not going to be able to shake them off overnight. And maybe it isn’t fair of me to ask you to stick with me through the inevitable ups and downs, but—”
“There’s no one I’d rather be stuck with.”
And as she leaned in to kiss him—and sunlight finally made the clouds outside vanish—she whispered, “Tá mo chroí istigh ionat.”
EPILOGUE
Ruby was the cutest birthday girl ever. Though she had been showered with gifts for her first birthday, the little girl was far more enamored of the boxes the presents had come in than any of the fancy dolls or shiny toys.
“It’s great to see Cassie so happy,” Hudson commented as he watched his sister play with Ruby inside an enormous cardboard box. Yet again, Hudson’s wife, Larissa, hadn’t been able to make the trip to Bar Harbor for the weekend. “She deserves it.”
“We all do,” Lola said. She, Hudson, Turner, and Ashley relaxed in the shade of their parents’ backyard. Rory and Zara were playing horseshoes against the back fence. At least, they would be playing if they could stop kissing for longer than five seconds. “If Rory can land a woman like Zara, there’s hope for all of us.”
Ashley laughed. “I said almost exactly the same thing to him. Good to know we’re on the same wavelength.”
Only Turner remained silent, looking lost in his thoughts. Lola nudged him. “What’s going on in that animated brain of yours?”
“Nothing much,” he said with a shrug.
But Lola didn’t buy it. “You’re a dark horse, Turner. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that you’ve been moonlighting as a secret agent, or something equally mysterious.”
In an obvious bid to shift his sister’s focus, Turner looked at his watch. “Brandon should have been here by now. His flight from Singapore landed an hour ago.”
“Hopefully, he’ll get here before Ruby goes down for her nap.” Hudson couldn’t quite hide the wistful note in his voice as he watched the little girl.
“I know Brandon loves to travel,” Ashley put in, “but it seems like he’s always on the road lately.”
Then Lola said what they were all thinking: “It’s almost like he’s running from something…or someone.”
Turner grabbed four beers from the cooler beside his seat and handed one to each sibling. “Here’s to always knowing where we stand with each other, even if the rest of the world can be a total mystery.” They clinked their bottles together and drank. “Now let’s go show Rory and Zara how horseshoes should be played.”
And as the four siblings walked across the lawn, they each let the question of true love—and whether it would ever be theirs—go.
For now…
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I hope you loved Rory and Zara’s story! Please be sure to sign up for my newsletter (bellaandre/newsletter) so that I can let you know the release dates for all upcoming books.
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Please also enjoy the following excerpt from the first San Francisco Sullivan book, THE LOOK OF LOVE
Chloe Peterson is having a bad night. A really bad night. The large bruise on her cheek can attest to that. And when her car skids off the side of a wet country road straight into a ditch, she’s convinced even the gorgeous guy who rescues her in the middle of the rain storm must be too good to be true. Or is he?