Chapter 176: Love Confessions

Naomi shut her eyes.

Then tilted her face toward the ceiling.

She looked like she was silently asking God to save her.

He could see exactly what this was costing her.

But now wasn’t the time to rescue her. If he touched her now, she might use him as an escape. So he stayed where he was.

Naomi took a shaky breath then another.

Finally, she lowered her eyes.

She gathered whatever courage she had left and turned to face him. "Yes, I love you," she whispered, shaking.

"Okay..." Dorian said quietly. "Does this mean you’re going to run? Leave me?"

Naomi looked at him through wet lashes. "My brain tells me to. But..." She pressed a trembling hand against herself. "In here, I die every single time I deny it."

"When exactly did this happen?" he asked.

She gave a shaky laugh. "I don’t know. I don’t know when it happened. I don’t know when you became..." She stopped, swallowing hard. "You." She shook her head. "And I’m afraid. My head thinks one thing, my heart decides another, and I’m pulled tight, Dorian. I’m tired. I’m exhausted."

"I need you to take the first step toward me, babe. Just show me you won’t run, because this..." He exhaled slowly. "This frightens me as much as it does you."

Naomi gave a wet little chuckle. "You’re crazy."

Dorian held out one hand. "One step is all I need. And I promise I’ll always meet you the rest of the way, love. I promise."

This time, when he called her love, Naomi didn’t panic. Somewhere beneath every wall she had built, she had already known.

Known when he helped her feel strong. Known when he defended her. When he showed up. When he taught her that care did not always come with a debt attached.

She had known. She had simply refused to accept it. She wiped her damp palm against her dress.

Then squared her shoulders.

"I’m right here, my love," he said softly. "And I’ve got you. I’ve got you all the way."

Naomi held his gaze then she took one step.

Just one.

It was all Dorian had been waiting for.

He crossed the remaining distance in about four long strides.

Naomi barely had time to breathe before his arms wrapped around her, his mouth was on hers.

The kiss was hard and bruising. Weeks of restraint, stupid rules and carefully avoided feelings crashed into it at once.

Naomi clutched the front of his shirt, mindful of his ribs before Dorian pulled her closer anyway. She kissed him back with everything she had been too afraid to say.

And for once, she did not wonder what came after.

She simply let herself love him.

Unfortunately, privacy in the Heathcliffe family remained a fictional concept. The kitchen door, which had sneakily been opened a crack again at some point, suddenly flew wider.

The entire Heathcliffe and Moreau family erupted into chaos. Even the kids joined in, cheering enthusiastically despite having absolutely no idea what the adults in the family were celebrating.

Ginny practically screamed.

Naomi was still holding on to Dorian, smiling into the kiss like she had finally taken her first real breath in years.

The relief was dizzying. No more hiding behind logic while her heart did whatever the hell it wanted anyway.

When Dorian finally pulled back, he laughed.

"I should have informed you my family is just as crazy as you."

Naomi laughed too, still breathless. "I like crazy."

"Turns out, I like crazy too. And I love you."

Naomi’s smile widened. "I know. You told me."

"I did?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"The night before you ended up in the hospital."

His brows pulled together. "I said I loved you?"

"You did."

"And I don’t remember this?"

"You were arguing with me because I wanted to cook for everyone while I was cramping. You told me I wasn’t going to stress myself more than I already had, and then you said you loved me."

Dorian stared at her.

Naomi started laughing. "You didn’t even realize you said it."

He exhaled slowly and shook his head. "That sounds about right. I’ve been holding it in for so long, it was practically killing me." He lifted a hand to her face. "I’ve loved you for a while now."

She thought hearing those words would make her want to run.

Instead, they made her want to stay exactly where she was.

The Heathcliffe family had officially reached the limit of their patience.

"Can we speak now?" Ginny asked.

The kitchen door was fully open at this point, and absolutely everyone was standing there.

Dorian glanced over. "What, Ginny?"

She pointed between them. "Does this mean you’re staying married?"

"We sort of already decided that."

Ginny’s mouth fell open. "What?"

"We just wanted to wait until after your wedding before telling everyone," Naomi added.

"When did you decide this? You literally told us yesterday you would be getting divorced."

"On the ride home," Dorian said.

"After all that?"

Dorian shrugged slightly. "It came up."

"It came up?" Ginny pressed both hands to her face. "You both are..." She dropped them again, lips tightening as though she was struggling to find a word that would not make Maurice complain about profanity. "So frustrating."

"That seems fair," Naomi admitted.

Lexie stood holding her husband’s hand. She had been right.

The contract had never been the real problem. Neither had the expiration date. The problem had always been two stubborn people who had somehow fallen deeply in love and pretending they were simply very committed roommates with an unusually active sex life.

Lexie squeezed Daniel’s hand. She was so glad she had been right.

But honestly, it hadn’t been hard to see.

Eleanor stepped forward first and pulled Naomi into a warm hug. "You are family, sweetheart," she said, holding her tightly. "One of us. You should never think of yourself as an outsider."

"Thank you." She closed her eyes and allowed herself to sink into the embrace for a moment.

Considering what had happened at the Whitmore residence the previous day, Naomi wasn’t even sure how much of her old family she had left anymore. She had finally said everything she had spent years swallowing without knowing what came next and probably destroyed whatever relationship existed between them.

And yet somehow, she had walked into another family and found the door wide open.

"You have no idea what that means to me."