Page 200 of When We Ignite

I set the box aside and threw my arms around his neck, holding him tight. “I love you, Ash.”

Sebastian wrapped his arms around me, tugging me flush against him. “I have never cared for anyone the way I care for you, Ethan. No one has ever done to me what you do—made me want everything. And you need to know that the place you hold in my heart, that impossibly big part of it, will always be yours.”

I squeezed my eyes shut and tightened my hold on him. I didn’t want this to happen. I didn’t want to let him go. This wasn’t fair. I was his. And finally, he wanted to be mine too.

Sebastian’s fingers traced slow, comforting lines down my spine, his lips pressing into my hair. “I’m sorry I can’t give you what you deserve. But trust me, no one has ever made me want to more than you. I’ll always be yours, Ethan. Always.”

My heart shattered. “I don’t want you to leave.”

He exhaled shakily. “I don’t want to leave without you. I was serious about locking you in my room.” He pressed a lingering kiss to my cheek, lips warm against my tear-streaked skin.

“My heart belongs to you too, Ash.” My voice cracked. “God, this fucking sucks.” I swallowed hard, trying to hold myself together. “Please don’t forget that.”

Sebastian cupped my face, his thumbs brushing away my tears. His own eyes looked red, and it killed me. “Never, my pet.” He kissed me again, resting his forehead against mine. “I could never forget a piece of myself.”

“Ash…” My voice broke.

“This isn’t forever,” he murmured, giving a small shake of his head. His expression twisted, pain flashing across his face. “Forget what I said. This isn’t the end, okay?”

I nodded weakly against his forehead.

“You and I don’t have an end. We transcend that bullshit,” he whispered.

A strangled laugh escaped me, and I pulled him into another desperate kiss.

“Just for a little while,” I murmured.

Sebastian nodded, swallowing hard before kissing me again. “Just for a little while.”

We held onto each other for hours, hands grasping, lips pressing against skin like we could imprint ourselves into each other before the inevitable came. The sky began to lighten, the sun creeping over the horizon, casting a soft glow across the room.

Then it was time.

The sun filtered through the windows, casting a golden glow over him. Even disheveled, he looked perfect. The soft waves of his hair had unraveled into unruly curls, his dark-brown eyes glowed with hints of amber, and his perfectly sculpted lips curled into a smile—breathtakingly gorgeous and devastating all at once.

The elevator chimed, the sound slicing through the quiet.

“Goodbye, darling,” he said softly.

I swallowed against the ache in my throat. “Goodbye, Ash.”

The steady tap of his shoes echoed like a hammer against my ribs as he stepped inside.

And then he was gone.

It felt like he had taken a piece of my heart with him.

The only thing keeping me standing, the only hope I had left, were the words we had whispered to each other in the dark.

Just for a little while.

EPILOGUE

ETHAN

Four Years Later

Spring was in full swing.