Page 114 of Love for a Lifetime

Olivia pulled back and hummed low in her throat. “As much as I’d love to keep doing this, we need to eat quickly if we’re going to make it to the appointment on time.”

The appointment. Nope. Dawson would not let that little ticking time bomb ruin this moment or any other.

“I don’t need food. I need you.” He pressed another quick kiss to her lips before pulling back to say, “I’ll feed you on the drive over.”

Olivia pushed against his chest with a hearty laugh. “I have a feeling that would break a few laws.” She pointed to the bag of food. “Eat.”

“What’s on the menu?” He opened the bag and reached inside. “Skittles!”

Olivia snatched the bag from his hands. “That’s for later. Food first.”

“I thought being an adult meant I could eat dessert first.”

She held up the candy bag and shook it, crinkling the packaging. “This is a distraction for the waiting room.”

“Ah. Got it.” He plucked the candy from her hand and stuffed it in his pocket. “Let’s eat so we can make out in my truck.”

Olivia laughed loudly, then covered her mouth.

He loved that. He loved that there was so much joy in her heart that it couldn’t be contained, even right before a meeting they were both dreading.

“You two are just adorable,” Lyric said as she walked into the kitchen with Asa right behind her.

“Guilty, and I have no regrets,” Dawson said. As soon as he got the green light to talk about their new relationship, he’d be shouting it in the streets. How awesome would it be to tell the entire world that he’d found the one woman that he was made to love and support for his entire life?

Olivia opened the bag and started pulling out containers. “There’s plenty for you two if you want chicken fingers.”

Of course she brought extra. Olivia never did anything halfway. It was all or nothing. She took care of people without being asked. There were dozens of people who’d been blessed by Olivia’s work who didn’t even know her name. She never asked for fanfare, and she was happy doing anything for someone else.

Dawson could understand that dedication. He practiced it many times himself. What was the point of doing something if you weren’t going to do it right?

His love for Olivia? It was everything. She was a perfect snapshot of each part of his life. She was the light in every second, and he couldn’t wait to see all the things she’d do in the Lord’s name.

When they’d finished lunch with Asa and Lyric, Olivia looked at her watch. Dawson stood and started cleaning up their mess. “Time to go?”

“Almost.” The word came out defeated, and she kept her head down.

Dawson tossed their trash and stopped beside her. Offering his hand, he pulled her to her feet and lifted her chin. Those hazel eyes were tired and afraid, but he wasn’t. Dawson knew that whatever the outcome, it would be good.

“I’m right here with you,” he whispered. “Never leaving.”

She pressed her lips together and nodded. It wasn’t any kind of assurance, but she’d learn over time. The Lord would never leave her or forsake her, and neither would Dawson.

30

OLIVIA

Olivia stepped into the elevator in a fog. The appointment went well. She’d kept it together in the office, and she hadn’t gotten the worst news imaginable.

They. The news belonged to Dawson too, not just herself. His future was twisted up in hers for as long as he allowed it.

What a tangled mess it was. They were finally moving forward with a relationship, and her baggage was stepping into the room and calling the shots. Stripping them of options they hadn’t had the chance to consider yet.

Dawson entered the elevator behind her and pressed the button for the second floor. Soon, they’d be out in the real world again, and this building and its soul-crushing news would be their souvenir–something to carry around and remember their time here.

Time was a fickle thing measured in seconds and minutes, but it was more of a bartering tool. You get what you put in, right?

Wrong. She worked hard, loved others, and gave of herself as much as possible. What was she getting in return?

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