CAPTURE THIS (Updating regularly)

Chapter 21

"What... What are you doing here?" 

Her brain felt sluggish, as though it had turned to mush at the sight of him. 

Alex gestured to the camera. "I'm working for the book shop's ad campaign. I came to get a few shots of the books." 

Amber nodded as though she was listening and not searching for a way past him to her friends. 

He took a step towards her and huskily breathed her name. "Amber, I -" 

She wanted to take a step back but her back was already pressing into a shelf of books on the back wall of the store. 

 "Ambs, where are you?" Matty called out from somewhere in the store. 

Amber swallowed the nervous lump in her throat and tried to keep her voice as level as she could as she replied. "I'm coming! I thought I found it but it was some other book." 

She couldn't take her eyes of Alex, whose intense gaze was roaming her entire body, setting fire to something inside of her. 

"God, I've missed you," Alex whispered as he took another step towards her until there was only his camera between them. 

Amber hated that her eyes kept flickering to his soft lips. She hated that she could feel the ghost of his lips on her. She hated how she could see the pain in his fierce gaze. 

"I've been so stupid, Ambs. I was jealous and bitter. You were right when you said that I should have reacted better but you have to believe me, Amber. I was worried about you too. It wasn't just about the stupidly good looking writer. I was worried that you'd be crushed if the book didn't go through. I need to know that you know how much I care about you. How much I love you, Ambs." 

He had spoken so fast and quietly that it was taking Amber a moment to process it all. She was distracted by how close his face was to hers, by how if she moved forward an inch or two, their lips would touch and how she knew his arms would leap into action and envelope her in his warmth. 

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, cupping her face with a hesitant hand. 

She melted at his touch. The tears were building up inside of her and formed a painful lump in her throat. 

Alex seemed to grow more brave as he intertwined his fingers with hers with his other hand and threw her a small smile. "I came across your book and God, I'm so proud of you. You don't need me at all, Ambs. I know that as well as you do, but I need you. You're everything that I've been missing and when I lost you, it felt like I'd made the worst mistake of my life. I was so mad at myself for not realising it earlier. I need you back, Ambs."

Amber said nothing but the tears leaked uncontrollably out of her eyes. Alex's eyes widened as she began to weep. He hurriedly wiped the tears away and pulled her into an embrace. 

"I'm so sorry, Ambs. I never meant to hurt you and I really hope you believe me." 

She desperately tried to regain composure as her face was buried in his chest but there was something freeing about letting all the tears out. It was as though she was holding her breath since their argument a month ago and this was the first breath she had taken since. Alex did nothing to restrain her as she pulled away to gaze into his eyes with her watery eyes. 

"I love you too, Alex," she whispered, placing a hand on her chest. 

His lips came crashing down on hers and he had never been more welcome. She melted like chocolate at his touch. His kiss was desperate and fierce, and Amber clung to him like her life depended on it.