I take her hands, both of them, anchoring myself. “After my father died, I learned there was an irrevocable trust he couldn’t dissolve. I tried to refuse it, but that wasn’t an option. It sat untouched for the last year while we builtourlife. But now, with our baby on the way, Beckett, you, it’s clear now that it's meant for us.”
Her brows knit. “I don't understand. What are you saying?"
"I'm saying you don't have to think about flower budgets."
"How much are we talking?”
I let out a slow breath. “Enough that you will never have to worry. Not about money. Not about security. Not ever.”
She blinks at me, once, twice, like she’s waiting for the punchline. Then she laughs softly, shaking her head. Her fingers tighten around mine, eyes wide. “You could have told me.”
“I wanted to earn my way back first.”
She studies me, her eyes searching. Then she exhales slowly, the tension in her shoulders easing. Her grip on my hands tightens.
“Thank you for loving me, for believing in me and our family. I know I've been hard on you after everything we've been through. And you never stopped showing up. You more than earned your way back first. I love you, Warren Carter."
"I love you, Janie Harrelson. I'll never stop showing up for you and our family."
She leans into my side as we start walking again, her head resting against my shoulder. “No more damn secrets between us, though. Got it?”
“No more,” I echo.
Ahead, the lights of the center glow steadily in the dark, a beacon for everyone who will walk through thosedoors. For her. For our son. For the baby only we know about. For the family we’re building.
And for the first time in my life, I don’t just hope for a future and a family. I see it. With her. With us.
Always.
If you lovesteamy doctor one-night stands and second chances at love, check out Doctor Second Chance, the first standalone book in the Doctor Feel Good Series. Dr. Shep Duncan is a single father with a fierce protector vibe.
Who knew a trip to the ER in a strange city would bring me face-to-face with the man who shattered my world a decade ago?
A freak accident lands me in an unfamiliar hospital. The last person I expect to see is Shep, my ex fromanother lifetime.
The moment our eyes lock, the world stops turning. The same burning connection between us is still there, only now I hate him with every fiber of my being.
He chose med school in another city over me, breaking promises and my heart. Now, here in the flesh, there is an intensity in him that still makes me wet.
Stuck in his city for rehab, I can't escape him or my feelings. Each touch and lingering glance erodes my defenses, devouring my resolve.
As I recover, Shep's unwavering support forces me to reconsider everything. Can I leave the past behind and make it work, or is there too much baggage and distance to undo the past?
Sneak Peek of Chapter 1
Isabella’s House,Birmingham, AL
Five of usfrom college are here, executing my party battle plan for our friend’s engagement party like it’s a military operation. Because if we don’t nail tonight, I won’t sleep, wondering why everyone else gets a love story, and I’m always organizing the backdrop… and somehow screwing that up too.
“I don’t want it to be fine. I want it to be perfect,” I tell Sophie as she wrestles with the lights.
“It’s a backyard party, Elle. Not a royal wedding.”
The Birmingham heat clings to me like a second skin as I nudge the terracotta pot a quarter inch to the left.The ferns still look wrong, though, and I can’t figure out why.
A horn blares in the distance, breaking the spell for a second. This yard might look peaceful, but we’re still in the city, and being here stirs up more complicated feelings than I’m ready to unpack. Mostly because he’s somewhere out there, probably living his best life while I’m sweating through my tank top, alphabetizing cocktail napkins.
God, even now, ten years later, just being in this city makes me think of him.