Epilogue:
One year later
The sun dipped low over the ocean, casting gold and rose across the water as waves lapped gently at the shore. Amber stood barefoot in the sand, her white dress fluttering around her thighs, hair loose and wild in the sea breeze.
She looked like a dream. His dream.
Nathan watched her from the balcony of their beach house, leaning against the railing with a glass of whiskey in hand and a hunger in his eyes that hadn't dulled in the slightest—not after one night, not after one year.
She turned, smiling up at him. "You coming down, or are you just going to keep staring at me like a creeper?"
He smirked. "Can't help it. You married me, remember? Staring's legal now."
Amber rolled her eyes, but her smile deepened. "You didn't even give me time to breathe before dragging me down the aisle."
"I gave you a week," he said, coming down the steps toward her. "That was generous."
"You're impossible."
"And you're mine."
Nathan reached her in two strides, his arms slipping around her waist, pulling her close. She molded against him effortlessly, her body still a perfect fit for his. It didn't matter how much time passed—every time he touched her, it felt like the first time.
"I still don't know how you found me that night," she whispered, resting her head against his chest.
"I didn't find you," he murmured into her hair. "You were waiting for me. You just didn't know it yet."
Amber tilted her face up to his. "And now?"
"Now," he said, kissing her slowly, deeply, "I never let you go."
They stood there for a long time, wrapped in heat and promise and salt-kissed wind.
Later, when the stars came out, Nathan carried her inside—just like he had a year ago, just like he always would. He laid her on their bed, the sheets cool beneath her, the air charged with need.
"I'll never get enough of you," he whispered, his mouth trailing over her skin.
"Good," she whispered back, trembling under his touch. "Because I'm never letting you go."
And as he took her again—slow and deep and endlessly—Amber knew this wasn't just desire anymore.
It was forever.