Page 116 of Mended Hearts

“I know,” she said, soft and sad. “It’s not that, Ollie, it’s just... isn’t all of this moving a little fast?”

I swallowed hard and merged onto the freeway, my grip tightening again.

“I don’t want to miss it,” I admitted. “God, please don’t make me miss it. At least with Carly, I got the kids.”

“Ollie, I don’t want you to missanything.”

“But if you’rethere, and I’m here... I’ll miss everything. First roll, first laugh, first step. How will I even know?”

“I mean, like you said, I’m at your house all the time anyway, and my place is only fifteen minutes away.”

“Forty during rush hour. An hour from the office. What if something happens? You have a heart condition, Leigh. What if something happens and no one’s there?”

“Kaia’s staying until I’m on my feet.”

“Right.”

“What’sthatsupposed to mean?”

“That it’s supposed to beme.”

“Ollie, I’m not saying never. I’m just asking for time to process everything before we flip my entire life upside down.”

“Yeah,” I said, nodding like it was completely logical. Because it was. But I still couldn’t breathe. “That makes sense.”

“Thank you. And I promise, I hear you. I’ll think about it.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.”

“It’s just... it’s a lot. Twenty-four hours ago, we were on our first date. And now, we’re talking about babies and moving in.”

“Why, though?”

When silence was my answer, I glanced sidelong—and sure enough, Leighton’s eyes were wide, her jaw tight, every line of her face screamingdon’t push me. That sharp twist of dread in my gut was like watching a car wreck happen in slow motion. I couldn’t stop it. And I couldn’t stop my mouth, either.

“Ollie, be serious.”

“I am.” The words snapped out before I could stop them. “I told you I love you, Leigh, and you didn’t say it back.”

“I…” She faltered. Her voice caught like gravel in her throat.

I nodded once, sharp and resigned. “Yeah.”

“Ollie, I—it’s not that simple.”

“Of course it is. I love you.Simple.” I swallowed, hard. “You need time. That’s okay. It wouldn’t even bug me if?—”

“We weren’t having a baby together?” Her voice was flat.

“When everything feels this unfinished? Yeah.”

“I get it. But I think you’re projecting a whole lot of your past onto me right now, and I gotta be real with you—I don’t appreciate it. I’m not Carly, and I would never put you through the shit she has. So let’s just take a breath. One thing at a time. Okay?”

“I think we should get married,” I blurted.

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