My throat tightens. “I know.”
“Talk to her. Get some clarity. You can’t keep going like this.”
Before I can respond, he brightens. “By the way, welcome to the girl-dad community,” he says, gesturing to himself like he invented fatherhood. “You’re going to love it here.”
Despite everything, I laugh. “How’s Ruby?”
“Perfect and exhausting. She discovered she can throw things, so Blair and I have accepted our home is a danger zone.” He grins proudly. “Worth it though.”
I feel the answering warmth in my chest immediately. “That’s how I feel every time I look at the ultrasound pictures.”
Wyatt leans forward, elbows on his knees. “So how’s Natalie doing? Pregnancy-wise?”
“She’s good. The baby’s good. Everything’s on track.”
Before he can say more, a knock sounds on the door. Ryan steps inside, holding a file.
“Jake, got a minute? Need to go over the St. James contract.”
“Sure,” I say, but I feel my shoulders tense.
Ryan glances between the two of us, reads the room instantly, and closes the door behind him. “Everything okay?”
Wyatt answers for me. “Jake’s missing his daughter.” Then, with a grin, “And her mother.”
Ryan’s face softens immediately. “How’s Natalie settling in at FlixPix?”
“Good,” I say. “Busy. Stressed. Focused.”
“That sounds like her.” He sits beside Wyatt. “When she’s overwhelmed, she’ll bury herself in work. Shut everything else out until she feels like she’s back in control.”
That hits a little too close.
“Yeah,” I say. “I’m getting that impression.”
Ryan hesitates, then leans back like he’s calibrating the boundaries between father and boss. “Can I give you some advice?”
“Please.”
“Keep showing up for her. She has a tendency to push people away when things feel too close.”
I lean forward. “Why?”
Ryan shifts uncomfortably, his jaw tightening. “It’s not really my story to share. I’ve said this before.” He pauses, seeming to wrestle with something. “But you should know she was hurt badly in a past relationship. They were supposed to get married, and the way it ended was rough.”
The air leaves my lungs.
“Married?” The word comes out strangled. “She was engaged?”
My chest constricts. The room feels smaller suddenly, the walls pressing in. Natalie was going to marry someone. Someone proposed to her, put a ring on her finger, made promises, and I had no idea.
How did I not know this?
Ryan’s watching me carefully. “I hoped you knew.”
“Hoped?”
“I hoped she’d confided in you. That she was finally opening up to someone.” He sighs. “She doesn’t talk about it. Not to me, not to her mother. Maybe to Stella, but even then, I doubt she shares much.”
