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I shook my head. "No. No, that's not it. I just... I can't let myself get sucked in. He's the epitome of mainstream. He's the fricking
king
of mainstream. How could he be satisfied with me and my weird ways forever? I mean, I'm sure Mom thought Dan loved her 'as is' when they first got together. That's the magic of new relationships. I just... I can't let myself turn out like her. Not to be mean, but...it's like she used to be painted in vibrant Technicolor. Then, over the years, he's been running this constant campaign to fade her brightness until, finally, she’s barely more than black and white. I can't wake up one day and realize that, while I wasn't looking, I turned to black and white!"

Grandma Trudy put her hands up in front of her to stop me from barreling on with my tirade. "Whoa, now. Slow down a bit there. First of all, Sebastian is not Dan. I know you think he might turn into Dan one day, or at least you're afraid that he might. But let me tell you something. I've held my tongue out of respect for long enough. You're an adult now, and I can be frank. Your stepfather is an asshole."

I burst out laughing at the sheer unexpectedness of the statement and the bluntness with which she'd delivered it.

"He is,” she said. “And I've known it from minute one after meeting him. So I wouldn't worry too much about Sebastian turning into him over time. Assholishness like that is pretty tough to hide, even in its early stages.

"Now, about your mother. I love her. She's my daughter. Don't get me wrong. But, just like Sebastian is nothing like Dan, you're nothing like her. Ever since she was little, she was always looking for love and acceptance. She'd do anything to fit in. That's probably my fault. I don't know. I tried to fix it. I tried to help her, to make her feel loved. I tried to instill a sense of self-esteem. But...I don't know. Maybe she was just baked that way. Sometimes, our personalities are what they are, and that's always been a part of your mom.

"Now, when she met your stepfather, it was a perfect storm. A man who loved to control matched up with a woman who was willing to give up her individuality to be loved. A perfect pair in the worst way possible. Now, honey, that's not Sebastian, and that's not you. So, why would you give away a chance at real happiness, real love, because of what a jackass your stepdad is? Hasn't he stolen enough of your joy already?"

My head spun with the implications of everything my grandmother had just said. A lot of it mirrored things Sebastian had already said to me or I had even said to myself. But, until I’d heard it laid out, step by step and piece by piece, in my grandmother's trademark no-nonsense delivery... Well, it just hadn't really sunk in. Now, these truths were hitting home like a hammer.

I dropped my forehead to the table on top of my folded arms, and then I sat up straight. I was done being passive. It was time to take some action. It was time to take control.

It was time to get my man!

I popped out of the chair and hurried over to my purse, taking my phone out with trembling fingers. Then I hastily tapped out a text message.

Me
: I'd like to talk, if you still want to.

Almost immediately, the phone made a swooshing sound as the reply appeared.

Sebastian
: Where r u?

Me
: At my grandma's.

I expected another immediate reply, but when I didn't get one, I sat back down in the kitchen chair, dejected.

My grandma stood and ruffled my hair. "Don't worry, baby doll. He's going to call you later, after you get home, just you wait and see. He probably just doesn't want to interrupt your visit. Here. I'll make you some hot cocoa."

"Thanks, Grandma." I didn't know how the warm, chocolate concoction would help my nervousness, but I appreciated the effort.

Just as she was pouring the warm milk into a mug, however, we were surprised by a sharp and insistent ringing of the doorbell. When I opened it, I was even
more
surprised to see a very out-of-breath, very sweaty, and (still) very shirtless Sebastian Winters. I stepped outside and joined him on the porch, closing the door behind me.

"Sebastian! Holy crap! Were you running in this neighborhood?"

He shook his head as he bent over halfway, putting his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"Were you still running on campus when I texted?"

He nodded, still breathing heavily.

"Holy shit. That's, like...over a mile away!"

"Hell yeah," he agreed, sounding winded. He straightened and grinned. "You can bet I've never been so happy to be able to do a four-minute mile in my entire life."

Joy and relief bubbled up in me so profoundly that I couldn't even put it into words. All I could do was grin from ear to ear and rush to Sebastian, my arms outstretched.

He stopped me, though, with a hand on my upper arm. "Babe, wait, no," he said.

My heart sank. I could imagine everything he wanted to work through and talk about before we kissed and made up, and that was completely fair. I couldn't blame him.

What he said, though, was, "I'm all sweaty."

I laughed and launched myself into arms. "I don't care," I gasped as I kissed him hard, first on the mouth and then all over his gorgeous, precious face.

I tasted tangy salt on my tongue as we kissed and held each other—a mixture of his sweat and my tears. Again, I didn't care. I only cared that we were back in each other's arms.

The road ahead of us wouldn't be easy. We were so different, and we were going to face challenges because of it, both from other people and between ourselves. But one thing I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt—and I was damn sure not going to forget it again—was we loved each other. No matter what obstacle we faced in the future, we would face it together.

"I love you," he whispered in my ear.

I pulled back and smiled brilliantly. It seemed like smiling was all I could do.

"I know that now," I replied, "and I'm going to do my best to remember it each and every day."

He stroked my hair back from my face. Love shone from his eyes so brightly that it mesmerized me.

"Well, if you forget, don't worry. I'll remind you."

And then we were lost again—in kisses, and in each other.

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E
PILOGUE

Michelle

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I
stood in front of the open suitcase and critically eyed the contents. I was going to be gone for a month and a half. I had to make sure I would have everything I'd need.

Without warning, strong arms encircled my waist from behind and I was swept off my feet. I laughed, grasping the muscular forearms that held me up. Sebastian placed a couple of quick kisses on my neck and then replaced my feet on the floor, but he kept his arms wrapped around me. I leaned back into the warm security of his chest and, for the thousandth time (that day), marveled at how perfectly I fit in his embrace.

He made a show of looking over everything in my suitcase. "Hmmm..." he said mock thoughtfully, "I'm not sure if you have enough books. The fifty-fifty clothes-to-books ratio you have going on here is a little light on the printed word, I think."

I playfully swatted at him. "Shut up! This is going to be an epic summer road trip. We're doing forty-eight states in forty-eight days. I can't run out of reading material. I'd go nuts!"

He moved to my side, squeezing my waist. "There are these little things called ebooks..."

I gasped. "I know you did
not
just say that to a future librarian!"

He put his hands up in surrender. "All right, all right. Far be it from me to try to separate a biblio-holic from her pages full of 'the hard stuff.' Or maybe I should say 'the hard
cover
stuff.'"

I groaned. "You're clever. I'll give you that. Nowhere near as clever as you
think
you are, of course... But, then again, that's a high bar."

He touched my hair the way I loved and looked at me, his eyes shining. They held affection, attraction, and—my favorite of all the A-words—complete and total acceptance. Oh, and I couldn't forget amusement.

"Do you really think you'll read this many on the trip?"

"I have to keep powering through as many books as I can," I explained lightly. "I'm on a quest to find a hero in one of them that even comes close to measuring up to you. I can't abandon it now!"

He laughed and pulled me into a warm embrace. He slowly drawled, "Darlin', that's gonna be a long, frustrating, and ultimately fruitless search. You may as well just give it up and enjoy the real thing."

"Hmmm... Okay. So 'modesty.' That's another quality the hero would need. Let me make a mental note."

We stood together for a moment until I finally sighed and gave him one last squeeze.

"All right. I'm satisfied with what I've packed. Let's close this puppy up and get on the road. My Instagram followers are expecting me to be in Oregon by nightfall and Idaho tomorrow. Montana after that, and so on and so on. We've got a schedule to keep. We’ve got states to visit, and I’ve got pictures to take. #48states48days and everything.”

He grinned down at me. "And the best part is you're gonna be in every shot."

I kissed him long and hard. My heart beat wildly, just like it did every time I kissed him. Or touched him. Or, hell, even thought of him.

"No. The best part is that
we
are."

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About Melanie Shawn

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N
EW YORK TIMES & USA TODAY bestselling author Melanie Shawn is the writing team of sister duo Melanie and Shawna. They are the authors of the Hope Falls, Crossroads, and Someday series. Originally from Northern California, they both migrated south and now call So Cal their home.

Growing up, Melanie constantly had her head in a book and was always working on short stories, manuscripts, plays and poetry.

Shawna always loved romance in any form - movie, song or literary. If it was a love story with a happy ending, Shawna was all about it! She proudly acknowledges that she is a romanceaholic.

They have joined forces to create a world where true love and happily ever after always has a sexy twist!

Acknowledgments

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I
want to give a HUGE THANK YOU to all of the amazing authors who donated their time and creativity to this fundraiser: Ruth Clampett, Cambria Hebert, K.A. Hunter, Jade C. Jamison, Liv Morris, Raine Miller, Emma Nichols and Melanie Shawn. Thank you for trusting me with your words and characters.

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R
egina Wamba – your creativity amazes me. You create a cover that tells a story beautifully. Thank you for donating your time to raise money for Pink Shades of Words.

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J
ulie Prestsater, you saved me from formatting! Thank you for being a life saver and formatting the book. I owe you big time woman!

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F
IFTY SHADES OF PINK team-

Thank you Karen, Sharon, Kimberly, Javier and Melissa for being amazing teammates. You are always there to help me out with my crazy fundraising ideas and never once say “you must be crazy”. I love you guys!!!

I love our weekends together in September as we do our best to complete the 39.3 miles. Let’s take more selfies this year though!

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L
ets Rock This Bitch and Kicks Cancers Ass!!!