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So where could she have gone?

He pulled his phone out of his pocket to see if he’d heard from her, but there weren’t any messages or missed calls.

Justin would know, wouldn’t he? Or would be able to find out.

Swiping up, he started to find the security office in his contacts. Before he could, the door opened to let Bekah in.

“There you are.” His relief felt palpable.

“Where did you think I was?” The puzzled look on her face told Josiah she couldn’t know the brief inner turmoil he’d experienced while not knowing where she had gone.

“I didn’t know.” He reached out and took her hand as the door closed behind her. “But I do think we need to talk.”

A few seconds later, they were seated on the love seat. The look on her face told him Bekah felt uncertain about what he might want to say.

He looked at their joined hands. “Athmetis isn’t after either one of us anymore.”

“No,” she replied slowly. “They’re not.”

Josiah took a deep breath. “Which means you and I have some decisions to make.”

“I suppose it does.”

Was he really ready for this? “The biggest one being if we decide to give this a go or call it quits.”

He glanced up to see her staring at their hands as well. Were those tears?

“What do you want to do?” A slight tremor in her voice surprised him.

“It’s a decision we have to make together.”

“To a point. But if one of us doesn’t want to give this a real shot, that’s all that matters. If one is out, we’re both out.” She still didn’t look at him.

Was that a good sign?

Josiah let go of her hand and crooked a finger under her chin and lifted her face until he could look her in the eye. “I want to give us a shot,” he said softly, now certain there were tears in her eyes. “If you’re willing, I’d like to see where this takes us.”

She gave him a smile, though it seemed more timid than he would probably like.

“Then we’re in agreement.” Relief soared through him.

“What does that even look like, though?” She pulled back slightly. “Do we stay here? Do we go back to the States? Do we live together while we try to figure it out, or do we live apart while we’re dating? How does any of that work?”

He leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. “We’ll figure it out. It means whatever we want it to mean. I don’t know that I’d want to stay here for the moment. I’d rather we go back to Trumanville and figure it out there. Far less prying eyes and less time in front of the public.”

Bekah’s shoulders relaxed as relief crossed her face. “That sounds great.”

Josiah stood and helped Bekah stand with him. He wrapped his arms around her as she put hers around his waist. Her head rested on his chest, and he felt... right. This felt right.

She sighed and relaxed against him. “I really like that idea,” she said softly before pulling away from him just a little bit. Enough that she could look up at him.

The moment from earlier replayed, but this time there were no interruptions.

Josiah didn’t have to move far to initiate their first kiss.

A kiss he immediately knew he’d remember for the rest of his life.

His fingers slid into her hair as he felt hers grip his shirt.