Swallowing hard, she said, “I shouldn’t have said what I did.”

“It’s part of that mistakes and flaws thing. You are prideful to a fault, Kacey. I know this and it doesn’t bother me because, at the end of the day, I’m not going anywhere.”

She slowly nodded, her eyes holding his. “It just bothers me so badly that I’m not the one who, when you look back on all of it, will be able to say that I had been there for you.”

His brows came together as he took a step toward her. “But you are, Kacey. Yeah, you didn’t hold my hand, tell me I could do it. But the idea of spending the rest of my existence with you was enough for me to fix what was wrong.”

“But I wanted to be there.”

“And you were, in my heart, but, Kacey, you couldn’t fix me, still can’t fix me. I have to repair me, but you can support me, you can love me. And because of that, I’ll do what needs to be done to be the man that I want to be. For you.” Biting her lip, she slowly nodded as he held her gaze. His chest was rising and falling, his eyes burning into hers. “The thing is, Kacey, I’m a broken man who is slowly but surely mending myself back together, and I couldn’t do it without you. I’m an alcoholic who is standing in front of the woman he loves, asking her to put the past in the past and love him for every single flaw he has because, believe me, I have a lot. But one thing is for sure, I’ll love you with everything inside me and more.”

“Oh, Jordie,” she said, tears flooding her eyes as she shook her head. He left her breathless, unable to even fathom how he still loved her. She was an asshole, but yet, he had quoted Notting Hill for her and it rattled her to the core. This man, this beautiful human, would do anything to make her happy, and she had been more concerned with being the person who helped him, rather than the person who loved him. How selfish and pathetic! Giving him a shy smile, she laced her fingers with his, stepping closer to him, their toes touching as she looked up at him. “That’s a hell of a speech. Unneeded, but one hell of one.”

He grinned. “I told you I was taking notes,” he said with a wink.

She smiled. “I don’t like fighting with you.”

“I don’t either,” he whispered, his lips dusting along hers. “And I’m sorry for keeping Natasha from you. I was wrong for that.”

“But I was wrong for freaking out the way I did,” she admitted. She bit into her lip as she met his beautiful dark gaze. “I’m sorry, Jordie. The past is in the past from this moment forward, like it should have been. And from now on, I’ll focus on making our story a happy one.”

“A happily ever after, then?” he asked, his eyes dark as they bored into hers.

“The happiest.”

“Good, ’cause you know that I used to think that wouldn’t happen for me,” he muttered and she smiled.

“Then I guess you weren’t with the right person?”

He nodded. “Nope, I wasn’t. I had to repair what was broken.”

“What a job you did.”

He nodded. “With your help. Someone had to hand me the hammer and nails.”

“I was thinking more screws and drills.”

Heat flashed in his eyes and she giggled before saying, “Freaking pig.”

He chuckled before wrapping his arms around her tightly. “Brat.”

Smiling hard, she leaned her head to his as he slowly wiped away her tears, his gaze holding hers. Cupping her face, he said, “Are you ready to stop being crazy and love me?”

“I never stopped loving you, nor will I ever stop being crazy when it comes to you.”

He grinned. “Don’t worry, I’m crazy too.”

“And horny,” she mentioned and he nodded.

“All the damn time,” he said, cupping her ass. “But this is it, Kacey. No going back. We are in it to win it. And if you ever tell me to leave this house again without you, you’ll regret it.”

She smiled, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “Gonna off me?”

“Damn right. If I can’t have you, no one can.”

“Crazy town,” she muttered and he laughed.

“Love does crazy things to people.”

“You got that right,” she said and her hand still hurt from punching that chick. Looking up at him, she grinned. “But I’m not going anywhere, Jordie. Call me your number two, I’m there,” she said proudly, but he shook his head.

“You mean my number one,” he said sternly. “Because you, Kacey Marie King soon-to-be Thomas, are my one and only,” he said roughly before his mouth dropped to hers and her heart soared. As their mouths moved together, their souls becoming one, she knew that she wasn’t going anywhere without a fight. That between her and Jordie, it would be a knock-down-drag-out fight before either of them got away from the other. She wouldn’t want it any other way, either. She had one hell of a story to write, and that story would be the best she had ever written.

As long as Jordie was by her side, helping her write it.

“When a crayon breaks, it’s still usable. You can still color with it, and that’s how I’ve looked at my life the last year.”

Jordie looked out at the group and smiled. Karl held Regina in the crook of his arm, pride shining in his eyes, with Karson and Lacey beside them, Mena in her arms, waving her arms and trying to get down to ruin something. Elli and Shea were there too, along with Benji, who was smiling like a proud father.