Chapter 43

43

JASON

The clouds hung heavy in the sky as we left the hospital, mirroring my mood. I was happy Mandy was on her way home and Drea continued to show strong signs of progress, but I dreaded the moment I'd have to say goodbye to Zach.

We grabbed a quick lunch at a local diner near the hospital before making our way to the airport, neither of us saying much beyond updating the other on how things were going with our sisters and our families. Even that conversation felt stilted in a way it hadn't ever felt with him.

I pulled into the short-term parking garage and found a spot to park.

"You could have just dropped me off at the curb. You're not going to be able to get past security anyway."

I shrugged. "I want to walk you in."

The truth was, I wanted every last second I could get.

He nodded, and we both stepped out of the truck. He just had the one bag and his backpack, but I picked up the bag, wanting to help. We held hands as we crossed the street into the terminal and didn't release them as we rode the escalator up to the main floor. Omaha's airport was small, so it was only a matter of about seventy-five feet to the start of the security line. I pulled him to the side, wanting to say a proper goodbye out of the way of other folks trying to get in line.

"I can't believe we have to say goodbye." I pulled him into a hug, wrapping my arms around him tightly, not caring that we were in a public space.

"I know," he said, his voice muffled by my shoulder. He pulled back slightly, his eyes burning with intensity. "The way I feel about you, Jason…it's like nothing I've ever felt before. You've been amazing this week. I don't know how—" He choked on a sob, squeezing his eyes closed against the tears threatening to fall.

I placed my hands on either side of his face. "Hey," I said, trying to get him to look at me. "We're going to figure this out, okay? I feel the same way about you. I didn't think I'd ever feel this way about anyone, but you unlocked something inside me, and I'm not done exploring it. I don't think I'll ever be done exploring this thing between us. Okay?"

He nodded, blinking as a tear finally escaped, rolling down his cheek, landing on my thumb.

"We'll figure out the distance thing," I continued. "Plenty of people have done it before. We can do it too. We have texts and FaceTime. And you'll be home in a couple of weeks. And maybe I can come out there. And before we know it, it will be summer, and we'll be jogging around the lake and hanging at bonfires."

I felt one of my own tears escape, and I wasn't sure who I was trying to convince more, him or me. He tilted his head up and kissed me then, pressing his lips to mine as if that connection could cement us together for the rest of time. I thought maybe it might.

I parted my lips, inviting him inside, and he hungrily accepted, swiping his tongue into my mouth and tangling it with mine. I met his energy eagerly, licking and sucking, completely disregarding the fact that we were standing in the middle of the airport. I was desperate to taste him, to savor him, to memorize his flavor. I wanted to imprint him on my soul.

Dimly, I registered a catcall from somewhere off to my right, but I ignored it, focusing only on him . Zach must have heard it as well because he broke the kiss, pulling away to rest his forehead against mine. "I don't know if I'll ever get enough of you."

I chuckled. "Same."

"I should probably go," he said, looking over his shoulder at the security line that had gotten longer while we'd been preoccupied, lost in each other.

Sighing, I released him. "Text me when you get in?"

"Yeah. I think it's going to be late though."

"That's alright. I doubt I'll be able to sleep without you next to me anyway."

He leaned forward and gave me one more kiss, keeping it chaste, before pulling back and looking into my eyes. He looked like he was going to say something but instead leaned forward, brushing his lips against mine before grabbing his bag and walking away.

I watched him go, then turned and made my way down the escalator and out to my truck, tears streaming down my face the entire way.