Page 15 of Broad Shoulders

We count down, and I make a show of straining against her grip, grunting with exaggerated effort as I slowly let her push my hand down.

“You let me win!” she protests.

“What? No way. You’re just surprisingly strong.” I can’t keep the grin off my face.

“Liar.”

We’re still holding hands, our fingers intertwined. I brush my thumb across her knuckles, watching her expression soften. The playfulness melts away, replaced by something deeper, more serious. My pulse hammers in my ears as I lean toward her, drawn by a pull I can’t resist.

She looks up at me, her lips parting slightly. I swear I can hear her heart beating in time with mine.

But just before our lips meet, she pulls back. Just a little, but enough.

“I’m sorry,” she stammers, her voice barely above a whisper.

My heart sinks, but I nod, pulling back.

“It’s not that I don’t want to,” she rushes to explain. “It’s just all happening so fast. I need to be sure that every decision I make is also good for Kai.”

What could be more right for Kai, to have his parents together? But I also get what she’s saying. If there’s even the smallest chance of this not working out, it’s not worth it to her to take that risk. She’s just being a good mom and putting our son first.

So I’ll be patient. It might kill me, but I’ll be patient.

Because if anyone is worth waiting for, it’s her.

6

ALANA

Idon’t know how I stand it. Day after day, Jackson quietly fits himself into our lives without making a big deal about it. He fixes the leaky faucet in my bathroom that’s been dripping for months. He maintains a fully stocked diaper bag in his car at all times, prepared for any baby emergency. He even shows up at my mom’s house to help replace her broken porch steps, working in the hot sun for hours without complaint.

Every new day makes it harder and harder to stay silent about my true feelings toward him.

The truth is that he’s had me from the moment he first kissed me a year ago. And that when he came back for me, I knew deep down in my heart that we were going to be together. But I was also scared, overwhelmed by the idea of having something so real, and I kept telling myself I needed to be careful. That even though Jackson was the father of my child, I had to protect my heart, had to maintain some distance to keep from getting hurt if he decided island life wasn’t for him after all.

But I can't keep pretending. Not when Jackson fits so perfectly into our lives. Not when I see Kai's eyes light up every time his father walks through the door.

We're meant to be a family—the three of us. Jackson is meant to be mine. It's what I want more than anything.

I just need to find the courage to tell him.

One afternoon, when I have the day off, Jackson and I take Kai to the beach. It’s a perfect day—not too hot, with just enough breeze to keep us comfortable. A handful of families dot the shoreline, a mix of locals and tourists with their telltale sunburns.

Jackson spreads out our blanket while I unpack the small cooler we brought. Kai sits between my legs, fascinated by the sand slipping through his fingers. In front of us, surfers ride the waves with practiced grace, disappearing and reappearing among the swells.

“How old do kids need to be before they can start surf lessons?” Jackson asks, watching a young boy paddling out with his father.

I take a sandwich from our cooler and hand it to him. “A lot of local kids start around age four.”

“Four?” He looks at Kai, who’s now examining a broken seashell. “That seems so young. I thought you’d say six or seven.”

I laugh as I gently extract the shell from Kai’s grip. “By six he’ll probably be teachingustricks.”

“Damn. I better start taking lessons so I don’t embarrass him with my lack of surfing skills.”

“Yeah, I'm not sure how many of your baseball skills will translate to surfing…”

“Hey, I’ve got great hand-eye coordination,” he protests, flexing his arm dramatically. “I just need to figure out how to hit a wave instead of a fastball.”

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