“You’re serious,” he says slowly.
“Yes.”
He stares at me like he’s searching for doubt.
He doesn’t find any.
“You don’t even know what marriage to him looks like,” Mason says.
“I know what kind of father he is.”
That shuts him up.
I press forward.
“I’ve watched him at games. I’ve watched him when Maddie loses. I’ve watched him get down on one knee in the dirt so she doesn’t have to feel small by herself. I know what that looks like.”
Mason’s jaw tightens.
“I’m not rescuing him,” I add. “And he’s not rescuing me. We’re choosing this.”
Gabriel finally moves.
He steps up beside me again.
Aligned.
“I won’t take her lightly,” he says. “And I won’t take this lightly. This isn’t some fly-by-night thing. Maddie needs stability. This isn’t a game.”
Mason studies him for a long beat.
“Dex is going to think this is hilarious,” Mason mutters.
“That’s his default setting,” Gabriel says.
Despite himself, Mason huffs out a laugh.
Then he sobers.
“This is my sister,” he says quietly.
“I know,” Gabriel answers.
“And if you screw this up, I will make it my personal mission to ruin you,” Mason says quietly. “Teammate or not.”
“I won’t,” Gabriel says, but he doesn’t stop there. He steps closer, not aggressive, just grounded. “If I screw this up, I don’t just lose her. I lose my daughter’s trust in my judgment. I lose the one person I trust to stand in hard places with me. I’m not gambling with any of that.”
The certainty in his voice makes my stomach do this weird triple flip.
Mason exhales.
He walks toward me and grabs my shoulders.
“You’re sure?” he asks.
“Yes.”
“You’re not being noble?”
