Page 129 of Billion Dollar Dispute

She blinks at me. I know it’s a tough ask because she never wanted to get married again. But I want it all with her.

“I always thought it was just a stupid piece of paper.”

“It’s important to me,” I admit.

She rolls over to look at me. “Really? Why?”

I pull her on top of me, wanting to hold her closer. “I want you and Chad to have my name… Lincoln.”

“You don’t know the meaning of slow, do you?”

“Not when he comes to you,” I say before kissing her, reveling in how she melts into me.

I can’t help the surge of emotion that crashes into me as I watch her eyes fill with tears, and she doesn’t stop the waves from rolling down her cheeks.

Chapter 39

Jemima

A few hours later

“We need to live together,” Harvey announces as we jog along the sidewalk after our warm-up in the bedroom. He suggested we jog along the park so the view would distract me.

It’s only my first run, so I’ll take any guidance.

Since I’ve gotten stronger, physically and emotionally, I feel the shift in my life. I’ve paid off the debt that weighed me down, and for the first time in a while, I feel like I’m truly happy. Looking after myself feels less like a luxury and more like part of who I am now. I finally made the time for a hair appointment, the fresh color giving me a new boost in confidence, which has been slowly growing, from the inside out, and with every day that passes, I feel it growing stronger.

“We will have to do it slowly,” I puff out, trying to keep up. How is it that he sounds so normal while speaking, yet I can barely talk as we jog?

“We could start leaving things at each other’s places and have sleepovers,” he suggests.

I’m concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, trying not to trip.

Chad has only recently started seeing us hold hands and kiss more often.

The sun beating down on my back isn’t helping my sweat situation, and his words are making it hard to breathe.

“I don’t know, we need a plan.” I gasp for air, finally giving up. I wave my hands in front of me and stop jogging. Walking with my hands on my hips, I suck in deep lungfuls of air.

“Why does it have to be so thought out?”

The tightness in my chest slowly eases. “I don’t want to make a mistake.”

“Chad hasn’t said anything?”

I shake my head, “No, but?”

“Has he acted out?”

“No, but?”

Harvey smirks. “No issues, then. Let’s not overthink it and just let things happen naturally.”

He stops walking and grabs me, kissing me in a way that makes it impossible to think about anything but how much I love kissing him.

“Unfair!” I moan.

“I know, I’m so cruel,” he teases before kissing me again.

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