Page 119 of Keep Me Close

For a second, she watches me before her eyes feather closed, her forehead resting against mine as the notes fill the room. Time falls away as one song bleeds into the next. The piano has always had the power to calm me, and I love that it does the same for her.

My fingers stroke over the keys one final time before stilling. We sit in silence as the last note reverberates through the air. Her eyes open, gaze locking on mine. She’s close enough for her breath to ghost across my lips.

“That was beautiful.”

My hand slides up her spine, drawing her closer. “Not more beautiful than you.” I hesitate for a beat, then add quietly, “I like you here.”

Her lips curve. “Here?”

“In my lap. In my place.” My thumb strokes up her side. “In my life.”

Her breath catches.

Now that I’ve said that much, I can’t seem to stop. Tonight rattled me more than I want to admit, and hearing her talk about returning to LA has been weighing on me. If I keep playing it safe, pretending this is something I can control, I’ll end up losing her.

She studies my face. “Really?”

“Yeah,” I admit. “A lot.”

Her breath stutters. “Knox…”

I should probably slow this down and think it through. Find the right words so I don’t end up scaring her away. But all I can think about is how close I came to losing this moment with her.

If she ends up walking away without knowing how I feel, I’ll never forgive myself.

“I don’t want you to go back to LA,” I rasp. “I don’t want you disappearing from my life again.” I swallow hard. “The thought of losing you… It rips me apart inside.”

Her eyes widen, but she doesn’t pull away. “If Broadway doesn’t work out⁠—”

“I don’t care if it works out,” I cut in. “Or about the show. None of that matters.”

Her hand tightens on my shoulder. “Then what does?”

I hold her gaze. “You.”

The floodgates open, and there’s no holding any of it back. My heart pounds so hard she can probably feel it.

“I’m in love with you, Chey.”

The words hang between us.

Her eyes search mine, as if she’s making sure she heard me correctly.

I force myself to keep going, even though every instinct tells me to shut my damn mouth. “I never meant for it to happen. Hell, I even tried to stop it.” A humorless laugh huffs out of me. “Guess that didn’t work.”

A small smile lifts the corners of her lips.

I push forward before I lose my nerve. “It’s hard not to fall for you when you’re like this.” My hand slides to her waist, pulling her closer. “Perfect. And now that I have you, I don’t want to lose you.”

There.

It’s all out in the open.

Emotion flickers across her face as silence stretches between us. Just as desperation starts to creep in, her arms tighten around my neck, drawing me in until her mouth finds mine.

“I don’t want to lose you, or this, either,” she whispers against my lips.

Relief surges through me as my hands tighten on her hips, unwilling to allow even an inch of space between us.