Never Forget (Never Letting Go #1)

After I lost my brother in a fire, I adopted his daughter.

His best friend became the only man she trusted not to leave.

In high school, I always had a crush on him, but he was strictly off limits.

Tonight, he came over to help us settle into our new apartment after the fire.

We built a pillow fort together and my niece snuggled up between us, and asked him, "Sam, you're not going to leave like daddy, right?"

He promised he wouldn't leave, then carried Rosie into her new bedroom and tucked her in.

When he came back, I was standing in the hallway trying not to cry.

I whispered, “Thank you. For everything.”

He shook his head and said, “You don’t have to thank me.”

With my heart pounding, I stepped closer, rose to my tip toes, and kissed him gently on the lips.

He lifted me off my feet as I wrapped my arms around his neck, and he carried me towards my bedroom.

He laid me down gently on the bed as my hair sprawled across the pillow, then stepped back for a moment, his voice rough as he said,

“Tell me to go, Jamie… and I will."