Andrea Michael - The Things That Matter

He kisses me, and I know. I know I’ve been right all along. That every time I fell asleep on the bus home from the prison and missed my stop, or every time one of the other inmates had leered at me during visiting hours, or the number of times Dan’s mother had called me a ‘grubby little bitch who ruined everything’ whenever I pleaded with her to visit her son. It was worth it, it had all been worth it.

Dan takes the backpack from me, putting it over his shoulder, and taking my hand in his as we start walking in no particular direction. Just, away. Our fingers interlink the way they always did, his thumb tracing my palm. Even that simple gesture feels like home.

‘So, what now? Where do we go?’ He kisses my hand.

‘Anywhere we want,’ I say, desperate to be that little ray of sunshine, to make this moment everything he’s been dreaming about for the last three months. ‘Anywhere we want. We go and we build a life. Where do you want to go?’

‘Anywhere! Somewhere brilliant. Shall we flip a coin? Find a globe to spin?’

I want to tell him it won’t be easy. That we’ll have to work and struggle. That he’s never really had to think about it before. But that sounds negative. In many ways I’m so much older than him.

I need to give him the option. I stop walking.

‘There’s still time to back out, Dan. Go home, apologise? See if they’ve changed their minds?’

He tilts his head as if it’s a trick question. Those blue eyes meet mine and he shrugs.

‘I’ve had as much time as they have to think about this. If they don’t want me, then I don’t want them. Let’s… let’s go live good lives, Taz. Great lives! And one day they’ll come crawling back and I’ll tell them to do one. Because we’re each other’s family now, that’s the deal, right?’

‘Right.’

He’s still in there, the dreamer, the one who sees the good, who sees the light. The one who reaches for happiness above all else. They didn’t take that away.

We’re going to be okay.

Better than okay.

We’re going to be perfect.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.