Page 27 of Sweet Escape
“How long have you known?” He picks up the small black and white photo with one hand while still holding onto me with the other—like if he lets go, I might disappear.
“Only a few days. I wanted to be sure.”
He doesn’t ask if it’s his, even though he’d have every right to. His thumb trails over the little jelly bean off to the right of the photograph.
“When everything happened with Jake, I must’ve forgotten about my pills. I… I’m sorry,” I say.
“Liv. Please stop apologizing.”
“You’re not mad?”
“No. I’m not mad. We were both there—we’re both equally responsible for what happened.” He hands me back the ultrasound.
“You keep it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
A silence descends between us as he searches my face. “Are you happy?” he asks.
The simple question knocks me off my axis. I was prepared for more of a fight, or to be kicked off the ranch, something much more dramatic than this calm, collected man before me. It takes me a moment to recover enough to give my honest answer.
“I am. It’s not something I expected, or even planned, but I’ve always wanted to be a mom.” When I look down at the silhouette of the tiny human growing inside me on the small slip of paper held in his strong hand, I know I mean it with every fiber of my being.
Wilder
Olivia is pregnant.
Olivia is pregnant, and it’smine.
Before I can reconsider, I pull her into my arms, doing the one thing I’ve wanted to do since the second I saw her at the diner. She comes willingly, relaxing into my hold. I turn my face to her hair and inhale that familiar vanilla scent.
It’s not enough; I want more of her. It was a mistake to push her away all those weeks ago; I see that now. It’s clear she’s still grappling with the news and everything that came before, so I won’t pressure her. I can be patient.
“Does that mean no trail ride?” I ask, wondering if I need to course correct our plans for the day. I want nothing more than to show Olivia my home and make good on my promise to take her riding, but not if it’s unsafe for her and the baby.
Our baby.
“Well… not exactly. My doctor gave me the green light to ride up until my second trimester. Short distances and I have to have someone riding with me.” She bites down on her bottom lip as if she thinks I'm about to deny her. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
“Let me get this straight. You’re pregnant withmybaby, and the only way you can ride is if I wrap myself around you?”
“That about sums it up.”
“Fuck me. How’d I get so lucky?”
She giggles, and the sound still affects me, even after our time apart. There’s still this undeniable pull I can’t quite explain.
She has this way about her that sets me at ease. It’s almost like I’ve been holding my breath, waiting for the grief to pass. Being with Olivia feels like finally coming up for air. The pain is stillthere, but with her, it’s bearable. I can’t make sense of it, or maybe I don’t want to. For the first time in a long while, I feel alive.
“Come on, Cupcake. Storm is waiting for us.”
I take her hand, lacing our fingers as I tug her down the well-worn path that leads back to the big barn. Storm whinnies, and her ears perk up as we round the bend.
“Can I pet her?”Olivia asks.
I hold out our joined hands for Storm to sniff. She immediately lowers her head and gives Olivia a playfulnuzzle, signaling her approval. I place Olivia’s hand on Storm’s neck, keeping hold of the reins in case something goes wrong.
