Page 151

“Hey, Tink?” I whispered against her hair.
“Hmm?” she murmured, her fingers drawing lazy patterns on my chest.
“Thank you.”
She lifted her head, her brow furrowed in confusion. “For what?”
I swallowed hard, emotion thick in my throat. “For seeing me. The real me. Even when I was trying my damnedest to hide him.”
Her smile was soft, and a little sad around the edges. “I’ve always seen you, Killian. I was just looking through the wrong lens. I didn’t see the treasure of your love, and you buried it,making it impossible to find. Now that it’s been dug up, I’m never letting it go.”
I tightened my arms around her, careful of my injuries, and made a silent promise to both of us. No more running. No more hiding. Whatever came next—good or bad, easy or hard—we’d face together. The lost boy and his fiery fairy, finally finding a home in each other.
And that, I realized, was the greatest journey of all.
Epilogue
TRISSA
Two weeks later
The flash of cameras was blinding as Killian and I stepped onto the red carpet. His hand—the one not encased in the sleek black cast—rested on the small of my back, guiding me through the sea of paparazzi shouting our names.
My heart hammered and blood whooshed in my ears. Killian rubbed my back lightly, sensing my trepidation. His touch was both reassuring and electrifying. He knew how nervous I was about tonight. The spotlight was not a place I was used to being, and since we’d made our relationship official, it didn’t seem to be going away.
“You’re stunning,” he said, his voice that low rumble that made my insides all fluttery. I hoped I always felt this way around him. His eyes raked over me, appreciation clear in his gaze, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe. “You’ve got this, Tink.”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. This was it—our first big public appearance as a couple. I’d just made it back from the press mini-tour with Peter and Wendy the night before, andhardly had time to breathe, never mind think about what this night would be like.
“Tris! Over here!”
“Killian, how’s the wrist healing?”
Killian leaned down, his lips brushing my ear. “We don’t have to stop for all of them.”
I smiled up at him. “I know, but it’s a big night. And if we give them a little of what they want, hopefully they’ll be satisfied.”
Tonight, VS Music Production had pulled out all the stops for their twentieth anniversary celebration. The who’s who of the music industry had descended on the Monarch Hotel’s grand ballroom, making this the event of the season. Every major artist signed to the label was expected to attend, and as two of their biggest stars, Killian and Peter were required to make an appearance along with their bands, Wicked Ways and The Lost Boys.
“Killian, when did you two officially get together?”
We ignored that question since the answer wasn’t an easy explanation.
“How did you two meet?” Another reporter asked.
“We’ve known each other for most of our lives.” He paused and slipped his arm around me while a photographer took our picture.
Killian was devastatingly handsome in his tailored black suit, and the cast on his wrist somehow added to his rockstar mystique rather than detracted from it. He’d been moody about it at home, frustrated how it limited his playing, but tonight he was determined not to let it ruin our evening.
“Mr. Hook,” called a reporter from a national gossip blog. “Any comment on the delay of your album due to your injury?”
Killian gave his signature bad boy smirk. “It’s just a minor setback. Sometimes the universe forces you to slow down for areason.” He glanced at me. “I’ve found the silver lining though. More time with the love of my life.”
My cheeks warmed and I caved to internal swoon. Already, the stiff practiced smile I’d plastered to my face had been replaced by a goofy grin. I loved how openly affectionate and loving Killian was in public.
We’d almost made it to the end of the step-and-repeats when another reporter stuck his microphone in our faces. “What does Peter Young have to say about the two of you together?”
“Peter’s happy for us.” I answered, glad that for the most part, this was true. Peter had come around to accepting our relationship over the last two weeks as we found our new rhythm as friends.