She blinked, like she hadn’t expected that answer.
“It has,” he said again, more firmly. “You didn’t do a damn thing wrong.”
Some of the hurt in her expression eased, though the worry stayed. She pulled back enough to really look at him, her brows drawing together. “I’m not going to ask if you’re okay,” she said softly. “Because obviously you’re not.” A tiny, sad smile touched her mouth. “But if you want to talk about what made you take off like a ghost was chasing you, I’m a really good listener.”
That almost undid him all over again.
Pierce stared at her for a second, then pulled her back against him, one hand sliding to the back of her head as he held her close. He rested his chin against her hair and shut his eyes.
God, he was lucky. He didn’t know what he had done to have someone like Charley standing here in the middle of his mess, worried more about him than herself after the way he had just acted. She was warm, kind, and funny when she had every right to be upset. She felt too good in his arms, too right. And standing there with the tide rolling in and out a few yards away, Pierce knew with a bone-deep certainty that his answer to her question about kids hadn’t changed. It was still yes. It would probably always be yes. And even though they were only on their first date, even though maybe it was too soon and too much and maybe he had lost his damn mind, he knew exactly what his heart wanted.
He hoped like hell that someday it would be with her. The thought should have scared him more than it did, maybe because his heart didn’t seem interested in caution where Charley was concerned. It had made up its mind already. He was falling for the amazing woman in his arms, and he was falling fast.
He opened his eyes and exhaled slowly. She deserved the truth.
Pierce eased back and kissed her temple, lingering there for just a second before reaching down for her hand. His fingers closed around hers.
“I owe you an explanation,” he said quietly.
Charley nodded but didn’t interrupt. She just squeezed his hand once, like she was letting him know she was there.
Pierce looked past her toward the dark line of the water, gathering himself. “My ex-wife’s name is Brittany,” he began. “A long time ago, I thought she was it for me. We got marriedyoung, and I loved her hard. Probably too hard. I thought we were building a life together.”
He gave a humorless huff that barely qualified as a laugh.
“At one point, I honestly believed we were about to have everything I had ever wanted.” His throat tightened, but he pushed through it. “She got pregnant right before one of my deployments.”
Charley’s fingers twitched in his.
Pierce looked down at their joined hands for a second before lifting his gaze again. “And I was happy, Charley. Happier than I can even explain. I had wanted to be a dad for a long time. The thought of coming home to a wife and a baby…” He trailed off and shook his head once. “I can’t even describe what that felt like back then. I thought my whole life was lining up exactly the way it was supposed to.”
The wind shifted, carrying the scent of salt and seaweed between them.
“When I got back from deployment, things were off.” His voice roughened. “I knew it before I wanted to admit it. Brittany was distant, defensive, and angry all the time. I kept telling myself it was stress, hormones from the pregnancy, and me being gone. Hell, pick your excuse. I used all of them.” He swallowed hard. “Then one night we got into a big argument, and the truth came out.”
Charley’s expression tightened with sympathy, but she stayed quiet.
“She’d been sleeping with somebody else while I was training before that last deployment.” His jaw clenched. “And the baby wasn’t mine.”
The words still cut him even now. Maybe they always would.
“I’m so sorry, Pierce,” Charley whispered.
He dragged a hand through his hair, the old anger and hurt stirring under his skin. “I was wrecked not just because shecheated. Not just because my marriage was over.” He looked at Charley then, really looked at her. “It was the baby, too. I’d already loved that child. Before I ever saw a face, before I ever held her, I loved her. I’d built this whole future in my head, and then in one fight it all got ripped away.”
Charley’s eyes shimmered in the moonlight. “Pierce…”
He shook his head, needing to finish this part before the rest of it buried him. “Tonight, when you asked me about kids…” He looked away for a second, toward the restaurant lights glowing behind them. “I was getting ready to answer you. Then I looked across the room and saw Brittany.”
Charley stilled.
Pierce nodded once. “She was there with her husband. Their kid was with them.”
Understanding hit her face slowly, followed by a fresh wave of sadness.
“Oh.”
“Yeah.” He let out a breath that felt scraped raw. “Seeing them was bad enough. Then, hearing you ask me about kids, on top of it, everything just hit at once. I wasn’t thinking. I just needed out of there before I lost it.”
