Chapter 318: Lilies For Sunshine

I frowned. "What?"

"Four years ago, when I told you I’d come back for you, I promised I’d bring you a big bouquet of flowers when I returned."

For a moment, I was speechless.

The words hung in the air, tugging at something faintly familiar in the back of my mind. I remembered a quiet evening years ago and how he had vowed that when he came back, he’d bring me so many flowers I wouldn’t know where to put them.

I had laughed it off then...I probably forgot the whole thing by the following week after he had left.

But Damien had remembered.

He had carried that little promise with him for four years, through the silence, the parental threats, and the life he had to build without me. And now he was here in my classroom, holding this massive bouquet like it was the most natural thing ever.

"You...still remember that?" I asked, my voice quieter than I intended.

"Of course."

I swallowed hard, suddenly feeling foolish for thinking I was the only one who clung to the small memories of our past.

Damien glanced down at the bouquet, adjusting his grip before offering it to me again.

"I tried to find flowers as breathtaking as you," he said softly, "but that was pretty much impossible, so I figured these lilies would have to do."

I stared at him.

There were a million things I could say in response. I could point out that flowers don’t have faces, that comparing me to a bouquet was ridiculous, or that he was getting way too comfortable saying things that made my heart flutter like a teenager’s.

Instead, I just stood there like an idiot, holding a cup of coffee and staring at the man I had spent the last four years trying to forget.

"Damien," I finally managed.

He waited patiently.

I reached out and took the bouquet from him, feeling its surprising heft settle in my arms. The lilies were stunning, their pale petals blooming elegantly between the lush green leaves, and the gentle scent wafting from them was calming enough to make me pause.

"Thank you," I said, my voice barely a whisper.

His expression softened. "You’re welcome."

I could still hear the students lingering in the hallway, their voices rising and falling in hushed whispers. I was acutely aware that I had become the focal point of at least three types of gossip, and I was pretty sure someone had already snapped a photo of Damien in my classroom.

I glanced toward the doorway, then back at him. "You know everyone is staring at you, right?"

"I noticed."

"And you’re not bothered?"

"Should I be?"

"You’re standing in my classroom holding flowers like some sort of romantic lead in some drama."

He tilted his head. "Is that a problem?"

"You’re making my job difficult."

"How?"

"Because my students are going to spend the next week asking me who the hell you are."

Damien’s gaze flicked briefly to the hallway before returning to mine. "You could tell them I’m someone who missed you dearly."

I let out a breath and looked down at the bouquet in my arms, trying to hide the smile that was threatening to break out.

"You’re so unbelievable."

"You’ve said that before."

"And I’ll keep saying it, asshole."

"I don’t mind." He reached toward me, gently adjusting one of the leaves that had gotten caught in the wrapping paper. The simple gesture made my chest tighten again, and I found myself watching his hands instead of his face.

For all the lavish gifts Damien could have chosen, for all the grand romantic gestures he could have orchestrated, it was the fact that he remembered something so small that impacted me the most.

"I should let you get back to work," he said, taking a small step back.

I looked up. "You’re leaving?"

"I’ve got a few things to take care of, but I’ll see you at home."

At home.

His words came so naturally that I almost didn’t realize how much they affected me until he turned toward the door.

We had a home again...

He paused briefly, glancing back with a soft smile. "Don’t forget to drink your coffee."

I glanced down at the cup in my hand. "You sound just like my father."

"Well, your father is a wise man."

"Don’t let him hear you say that. He’ll get unbearable."

Damien chuckled quietly as he made his way out of the classroom, his footsteps echoing into the hall.

A few students quickly moved aside to let him pass, and I caught snippets of murmured questions and stifled laughter as he disappeared around the corner.

I stood there by my desk, holding the huge bouquet in one arm and the coffee in the other, staring at the doorway with a red-as-fuck blush on my cheeks long after he was gone.

Eventually, I looked down at the lilies.

Their delicate petals seemed too stunning to be real, and the cream wrapping was tied with a simple ribbon that matched perfectly.

I still heard Damien’s voice in my head, repeating the promise he had made four years ago, and I found myself remembering the younger man I had been, sitting beside him and believing our future was something we could shape together.

I had spent so long convincing myself those memories belonged to a past that was finished that I hadn’t considered Damien might have also been holding on to them.

I glanced at the bouquet again and let out a small, helpless laugh.

I was going to need to figure out where to put these before the next class came in, though hiding them would be tricky given their size...practically the size of a small tree. I thought briefly about leaving them in the staff room, but that meant explaining their origin to my colleagues, which didn’t seem great.

Maybe I could just carry them home and pretend they appeared out of nowhere.

That was a ridiculous idea, but no more absurd than Damien showing up at my workplace with flowers because he missed me after just five hours.

I looked at the lilies one more time, my fingers tightening around the wrapping paper.

He remembered a promise I had nearly forgotten, and somehow that made it harder to continue pretending I wanted to push him away.

I fucking need a life together with him so bad, and this time... I decided to make a promise, not to him but to myself.

I wouldn’t let him be taken away from me, I wouldn’t let him go even if it was for his own good again.

This time... I would fight for him to the damn bone.