I allow myself this space, this time to simply be, and it’s everything.
J.T.’s heartbeat thuds between us—strong, steady, constant.
And I press my face into his shoulder and breathe him in.
He smells like pine trees and Ivory soap.And something else that’s masculine and sexy and entirely him.
He doesn’t demand anything.
Doesn’t kiss me.
Doesn’t turn it sexual.
Not yet.
He just holds me.
Like I’m not a problem to solve.
Like I’m not an inconvenience.
Like I’m worth protecting.
“You think I don’t know what I’m signing up for?”he murmurs against my hair.
“I think you’re used to winning,” I admit.“But I’m not sure this is something you can just bulldoze.”
He huffs softly.
“Maybe and maybe not.But I’m not afraid of a fight.”
“I am,” I whisper.
His grip tightens just slightly.
“I’ll protect you, Honey.”
“But who will protect you?J.T., really, this might be too much even for you,” I confess.
And for some reason, it feels like my heart is breaking.
“Kelly, all this stuff,you, none of it is too much,” he says, voice low and steady.“You’re exactly enough.And your son?He’s scared.That’s not drama.That’s a kid who loves his mother.A kid who needs stability.”
Tears sting my eyes.
“I don’t want to ruin your life, J.T.,” I confess.
He leans back just enough to look at me.
“Kelly,” he says firmly, “you are not ruining anything.You’re building something new.With me.And it’s everything I’ve ever wanted.”
My chest aches.
Because I don’t know if I believe I deserve that.
But sitting here in his lap, wrapped in his arms, feeling his heartbeat steady under my ear—for the first time since this whole mess started—I feel like maybe I’m not dragging him into chaos.
Maybe we’re walking into it together.
