“I wanted to. Call it a thank you for seeing Ben on such short notice.” I catch her eye. “And for being so nice to him.”
“He makes it easy.” She’s looking at Ben like he’s the most precious thing in the world, and something in my chest cracks wide open.
I want this. I’d love to see her looking at Ben like that every day. I want her in our life. I need to come home to her smile and wake up to her warmth and teach her that not everyone leaves.
We say our goodbyes, and I usher Ben toward the door. But before we leave, I turn back.
“Willa?”
She looks up from the cupcakes, her expression soft and open in a way I’ve never seen before.
“I’m picking you up at four. Don’t forget.”
“I won’t forget.” Her smile could power the entire town. “Thank you, Henry. For… everything.”
“Anytime, Doc.”
Ben talks about Willa the entire drive to his grandmother’s house— where he’s spending the afternoon so I can get back to work. He talks about her smile and her kindness and how she’s the prettiest doctor he’s ever seen.
“Daddy, are you going to kiss her?” he asks as I pull into my parents’ driveway.
I nearly choke. “What? Ben, I barely know her.”
“But you like her. I can tell. You smile when you talk to her.” He unbuckles his seatbelt and looks at me with complete seven-year-old certainty. “I think she should be my mom.”
My heart splinters into a thousand pieces. “Buddy, that’s... we can’t just make someone your mom. These things take time.”
“But you like her?”
I look at my son, this brave little boy who’s been without a mother for five years, who’s watched other kids get picked up by their moms while I’m the only dad doing drop-off most days. Who deserves the world and has somehow decided that Willa Monroe is part of that world.
“Yeah, buddy. I like her and I’d really like to get to know her.”
“Good.” Ben grins and hops out of the truck. “I’m going to tell Grandma we met my new mom!” He slams the door.
Shit!
I open my door. “Ben, wait—” But he’s already running up the porch steps, and my mother is opening the door with a curious expression.
That’s going to be a fun conversation.
Chapter 7
Willa
I catchmyself humming while filling out patient charts.
Humming?
Yup. Humming. Weird.
I haven’t hummed in over two years, not since before the last guy made me believe that every sound I made was too loud, too annoying, too much.
But today I’m humming, and I can’t even be embarrassed about it because all I can think about is Henry’s smile and Ben’s excitement and the way it felt to be wanted.
Not needed. Not tolerated. Genuinely wanted.
My phone buzzes at six, just as I’m finishing up my last notes of the day. It’s a necessary part of my job, not the glamorous part. Not that pediatrics is glamorous, but keeping track of files is crucial and I take it seriously.
