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“They're beautiful.”

He smiles. “Yeah?”

I nod. “Absolutely beautiful.”

I lift one carefully from the box.

The diamond catches the candlelight, throwing tiny sparks across my fingers.

“I don't even know what to say.”

“You could say you'll wear them.”

I laugh softly. “I'm never taking them off.”

“Probably should for hockey games.”

“Why?”

“Because if you lose one, I'll have to crawl around Ignite Arena looking for it.”

I laugh and set the box aside. Then I throw my arms around his neck.

He catches me.

“Thank you.”

He kisses my cheek. “You're welcome.”

I pull back. “Your turn.”

He raises an eyebrow.

“My turn?”

“I got you something too.”

“Becks, you didn't have to.”

“Pretty sure that's not how Valentine's Day works.”

He laughs. “Smartass.”

I reach into the drawer of the nightstand where I hid his present yesterday. It's wrapped in plain brown paper and tied with a green ribbon. Nothing fancy. But my hands tremble a little as I give it to him.

Bishop notices. His smile fades. “Hey. What's wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Becks.”

I take a breath. “Just open it.”

He unties the ribbon. Peels back the paper. And finds a thick stack of printed pages, bound neatly together. On the cover is the title of my manuscript. And beneath it⁠—

By Delaney Beckett.

For a long moment, he doesn't move.