Page 232 of Override

He is quiet for another several seconds. Long enough that I wonder if he'd decided not to say whatever had been keeping him trapped inside his own head.

Finally… "If..." He frowns almost immediately. "No." His gaze drifts toward the floor. "That's not how I want to ask."

I wait.

He draws a slow breath. "If, while I'm gone..." Another pause. "...you decide you'd rather stay somewhere else..." The words sound painfully deliberate, as though each one had been inspected before being allowed out into the room. "With your parents."

"Rachel."

"Anywhere."

His eyes finally find mine again. "Would you let me know?"

I blink.

"So I know where to find you?" He shakes his head once. "So I know where you are." His fingers twitch beneath mine. "I don't..." He stops again. The muscles in his jaw tighten. "I don't want to come home and spend hours trying to determine whether something happened to you..." Another pause. "...or whether you simply decided you didn't want to be here anymore."

The room falls completely silent. My heart breaks so quietly I am sure he heard it. He wasn't asking me to stay. He wasn't asking for a promise. He'd already accepted that leaving was a possibility.

He was only asking me to let him know so he didn’t worry.

For just a second, I simply look at him. At the worry he isn't trying to hide. At the way he's already accepted that I might leave. That somehow hurts more than anything else he's said.

Slowly, I rise onto my toes. His eyes widen ever so slightly as I cup his jaw and press a soft kiss against the corner of his mouth.

When I pull back, I don't go far. "Taibhse..." His eyes close. Just for a heartbeat. "I would absolutely tell you."

His brow furrows. "If I ever thought I wanted to leave... I'd tell you."

I smile softly. "You'd never have to wonder where I was."

Some of the tension leaves his shoulders, but not enough.

So I keep talking. "I'm actually hoping you'll let me stay."

His eyes meet mine again.

"I..." I laugh quietly, suddenly feeling much more vulnerable than I expected. "I kind of like being here."

His expression doesn't change, but I've learned enough about Keaton to know that doesn't mean he isn't feeling anything.

"I like being around you." The words come easier now. "You make me happy." I watch him swallow. "You make me feel safe." Another tiny shift. "And..." This one feels bigger somehow. "You make me feel seen." The room falls completely silent. "I don't think I've ever really felt that before."

Not with Ronan. Not growing up. Maybe...Not ever.

I reach for both of his hands, threading my fingers through his. "So..." I squeeze them gently. "If it's okay with you..."

A smile finds me before I can stop it. "I'd really like to be here when you come home." His fingers tighten around mine. "And..." I tilt my head just enough that he has to look directly into my eyes. "I'd like to stay for as long as you'll have me."

Chapter 52

Keaton (Skee)

For as long as you'll have me. The words settle somewhere deep inside my chest.

My brain immediately begins doing what it always does. Evaluating. Interpreting.

She doesn't mean forever. She's talking about now. About today. About while she's healing.