He stops.
“Wondering what?” My voice is softer than his, if that’s possible. So soft, I wonder if he even heard me.
Finally he answers. “Wondering if I could love you the way I loved her. And if that makes me... terrible.”
Oh God.
He said love.
He said YOU.
My face is burning. My heart feels like it’s about to escape my chest through sheer force of will.
But he said ‘could,’I remind myself.
Could.
And that’s the key word.
He doesn’t love me.
Not yet.
“You’re not terrible,” I manage. “You’re just. Human.”
“Daddy!” Ben’s voice cuts through the moment. “Frederick says the answer is elephant!”
“Is Frederick right?” Marco asks, not breaking eye contact with me.
“Yes! Frederick’s so smart!”
I can’t breathe. Can’t think. Can’t process the fact that Marco Fiore just used the word love in a sentence that included me.
He doesn’t love me yet, I remind myself.
Jag’s voice cuts through the mental fog. “Approaching route waypoint. Filepe confirms satphone connectivity. All systems green.”
Right.
The trip.
The cabin.
The woods that I’m absolutely not terrified of.
When you have to choose between having a breakdown about feelings or a breakdown about trees.
Why not both?
My phone buzzes. Filepe in the security chat:Benign tail noted. Nothing actionable. Proceed as planned.
Marco checks his phone, nods, then looks at me. “You good?”
No. I’m not good. I’m thinking about what he said. About love. About whether he could love me. About whether I’m ready for that.
And about the fact that in two hours I’ll be completely surrounded by trees and trying very hard not to have a complete meltdown.
“Totally good,” I lie. “Just thinking about wilderness safety protocols.”
