Page 161 of Rivals

I crane my neck to look up at him. “Areyouok?“ He nods and presses a quick kiss to my lips. It settles something in my gut— peace.

“We’re not meant to have everything, my love. I mean, sure, I would have liked to win. But life goes on.”

You have done well.

I look around the warmly lit space and people dressed up for the event. My heart pounds, but it’s not out of disappointment. I realize it’s because we just turned the page, and my world isn’t ending. For now, I didn’t immediately drop like a ton of bricks into a depressive episode. I’m fine. “Yeah, I want to go home,” I say.

“Then let’s go home,” he says, leading the way out of Central Park and back into the concrete jungle.

Chapter 95

Lachlan

I’mnotmad.I’mok. I’ve accepted it. Elisabeth and Oscar did good work; there is no contesting it. I was worried about Revna, though. I was afraid she got her hopes up so high because she felt like we needed to win this. It was something meant for us to complete.

She’s right, I do think it was, but not for the sake of the competition. I think it was entirely because we were meant to come together at the end of this. We were meant to be, it had to happen this way.

The time to dwell in the past is gone. It is time to move forward together.

I am ready to move forward. Sure, I wish a few things went different, but what matters is we are here now. I glance at her as we walk through the lobby of my building. I sprung for a cab for us. She was too cold, and that dress was too nice for a dirty subway. On the way home, I took her shoes off and put on the socks I carried in my pocket, and then I carried her to the door so she didn’t get her socks too dirty.

We ride in silence up the elevator. She’s leaning on one side, and I’m leaning against the other, so we face each other. My stomach grumbles, and I realize I didn’t eat a thing while we were there. I was honestly too nervous, and knowing Revna, she was, too.

“I’m hungry,” I mumble.

“Me too, order our favorite?” I nod and pull out my phone to put in the order.

“I want to watchThe Vampire Diaries,“ she says. I shrug.

“I mean, we’re on season three. I like Damon more than Stefan, so I need to know what happens.”

“You like it, don’t you?” she grins. “And don’t say you like it because I like it,” she says mockingly.

“Fine, I like the storyline, so yeah, I want to know what happens. I like the show.” She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

I open the door to our place and something feels different. It all looks the same, but something changed while we were gone.

“We turned the page,” Revna whispers.

“What, baby?”

“We turned the page,” she says louder. “That’s why it feels different.” I hum. Maybe she’s right. It does kind of feel that way. I’m not nearly as upset as I thought either of us would be for losing. We sold a few pieces, might even sell the one from tonight, and we have a ton of commissions coming in.

We have begun a new chapter of our lives.

“So, what do we do?” Revna asks, and it’s like Deja vu. She’s asked that question before, and I don’t have an answer now.

“We keep on living, Revna,” I say more to myself than to her. Life goes on. People are born and die every second on this earth. So what do you do with the time you have?

Chapter 96

Lachlan

Four Months Later

Isetuptherooftop with candles and our favorite foods from the Chinese place down the street. We should probably eat healthier than we do, but hey, I work out like a fiend. It balances out.

Revna is out with a friend she met at NA. They seemed to connect well and I’m glad she has a girlfriend in her life. As much as I want to be her everything, I know there are some things men just can’t do. Girl talk’s one of them.