The sun was warm on Ryleigh’s skin as she walked beside Derek, their hands clasped between them like it was the most natural thing in the world. The town buzzed with quiet life around them—shopkeepers sweeping their stoops, children chasing each other past flower carts, the distant clang of a bell from the blacksmith’s forge—but none of it mattered. Not really. All she could focus on was how perfect this moment felt.
They took their time walking toward the sandwich shop, neither in any rush to reach their destination. Derek would occasionally point something out—a mural painted on the side of a bakery, a wooden bench where he'd once fallen asleep after a long shift at the clinic—and Ryleigh found herself leaning her head against his shoulder, laughing softly at his stories. He tightened h
