This beautiful man wants a future with me. With us.
Not because he feels obligated or because the court needs us to play a part, but because he wants us.
My heart twists and opens all at once, and I feel it—this quiet shift in the universe where everything starts to make sense. All theyears of doing it alone, of bracing for disappointment, of learning to carry things that were too heavy…and now this miracle of a man is standing in front of me asking to carry them with me.
Not to save me. To stand beside me.
I press a trembling hand to my mouth as he opens the box. The ring glows under the low lights—vintage, worn, and beautiful, the diamond catching every flicker of warmth in the room.
He looks up at me, eyes soft but sure. “Katie, I love you. Will you marry me?”
The world seems to blur at the edges—Evie’s whisper of say yes, Mom somewhere in the background—but all I can see is him.
This man who stepped into the chaos of my life and never once looked like he was ready to run.
I nod, tears already spilling. “Yes.”
Cam exhales, a quiet, almost disbelieving laugh slipping out as he slides the ring onto my finger. Evie bursts into applause, bouncing in her seat.
“Now we match!” she squeals, holding up her bracelet.
Cam stands, cupping my cheeks as I reach up to meet him halfway. The kiss is soft, quick, full of something that feels dangerously close to forever.
When he pulls back, his voice is rough with emotion. “Guess we should start planning that backyard wedding.”
I laugh through my tears. “Guess we should.”
Chapter fifty-one
Cam
Evie’s bracelet catches flashes of light from passing streetlamps. She’s sitting in the back seat, softly humming.
Kate’s in the passenger seat, quiet, her hand resting over mine where it rests on the console. She hasn’t let go since the restaurant.
Every few seconds, she glances at the ring. It’s subtle, like she doesn’t want me to see her doing it—but I see it. And every time her thumb brushes that band, I feel something in my chest unclench that’s been tight for a long time.
Evie sighs contentedly behind us. “That was the best dinner ever.”
Kate smiles over her shoulder. “Yeah, it really was.”
I just keep driving, the soft rhythm of their voices sinks into me. The windows are cracked, warm summer air curling through the cab, the radio low.
It feels like peace. And I didn’t know I was missing it until now.
When I first came up with this idea—marriage for stability, a plan to keep Evie safe—it was practical. I told myself I could handle it, that it was just about doing what’s right. But when I slipped this ring on her hand, it wasn’t just a relief. It was a shift. Like my entire life moved half an inch, just enough to fall into place.
She said yes, and it hit me—this woman trusts me with the two most important parts of her world—her heart and her daughter. I glance over at her. Her gaze follows mine to the mirror, then back to me. We share a quiet smile that feels a little like a secret and a little like a promise.
Kate and Evie disappear down the hallway the second we step inside, the excited buzz from dinner still clinging to the air. I hear the water running, the squeak of the step stool being dragged across the tile, and Evie’s voice doing some dramatic retelling of her “best night ever.”
I lean a shoulder against the wall outside the bathroom doorway and peek in.
Evie is on her tiptoes, bracelet dangling from her wrist as she brushes her teeth. There’s toothpaste on her cheek, in her hair, on the sink—chaos in a four-foot package. Kate stands behindher, gently pulling her curls back so she doesn’t get mint foam everywhere.
My chest pulls tight in that stupidly warm way it does lately.
This. Right here. This is the life I want.
