Her gaze softened slightly. “You don’t think Drew chose this?”
“I think he learned how to survive inside it.”
A quiet silence followed. The wind carried the faint scent of eucalyptus through the parking lot as it moved down from the hills.
Mila rested her head lightly against my shoulder. Her warmth spread through my chest immediately. “Does it make you angry?”
“What part?”
“That your family built something that complicated.”
I briefly considered that. “Not anymore.”
Her fingers brushed slowly across the back of my hand. “What changed?”
I turned my head slightly until my cheek rested against her hair. “You.”
She shifted just enough to look up at me. “That’s a lot of responsibility.”
“It’s not responsibility.”
“What is it?”
“Clarity.”
The corner of her mouth curved faintly. “You’re getting philosophical.”
“Don’t get used to it.”
She laughed softly. The sound carried across the empty lot before fading into the quiet night. After a moment, I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. She came easily, settling against my side as if that spot had always belonged to her.
“Walking away from my family isn’t about avoiding consequences,” I continued after a moment.
“Then what is it?”
“It’s about deciding who I’m going to be without them.”
Her fingers curled lightly around mine.
“And who is that?”
I didn’t hesitate. “The guy sitting here with you.”
Her breath warmed the collar of my shirt. “You make it sound simple.”
“It isn’t.”
“Then why does it feel that way when you say it?”
I tilted my head until our foreheads touched. The answer had already been decided long before tonight. “I know exactly what I’m risking.”
My hand moved up the back of her neck, holding her there gently, my thumb brushing the warm skin beneath her hair. The space between us disappeared the second she pulled me down.
Her mouth met mine with quiet certainty at first. Slow. Intentional. It deepened, her breath catching against mine as if every moment that had tried to pull us apart had only brought us back to this.
My focus narrowed to the warmth of her lips and the steady rhythm of her breath against mine.
Then she leaned closer. Her fingers slipped into my hair, tightening slightly as her body pressed fully against mine. The shift sent heat straight through my chest.