“Same,” she murmured.
Z’s smile made Brit’s heart rejoice.
“You’ve earned a spot in my inner circle,” Z said to him. “Had I been run off the bridge, I wouldn’t have survived, let alone been able to save anyone else. I’m impressed, very impressed.”
“He’s a beast,” Brit said.
Z chuckled. “Yes, he is.”
Tap-tap.
Dr. Ferguson entered the room. “Ah, just what I like to see. Everyone’s smiling. Let’s check your blood pressure.” She wrapped the band around Rebel’s arm, watched the dial. “Much better.”
After removing the cuff, she said, “I’d suggest you go easy, but my gut tells me that’s not your style.”
“I’ll do my best,” he replied.
“Good luck to you both,” the doctor said. “Z, walk me out.”
They left, pulling the door closed behind them.
Brit stood in front of him while he sat on the hospital bed. She married her lips to his and her entire world fell back into place. “I can’t believe what you did. You’re an amazing man. Actually, part man, part beast.”
His gentle kiss made her heart bloom. “I love you, Britain. I would give up children?—”
She pressed her index finger to his mouth. “No future talk. I loveyou, and I’m not ending this.” She folded her arms around him and breathed him in.
He was everything she’d ever wanted, ever dreamed of. He was her forever person. “We’ve got targets on our backs, so we’re going to watch our sixes.”
She re-tied the hospital gown before shouldering into the coat the lady at the wharf had given her.
“I need two seconds with my dad.”
She was out the door before Rebel had a chance to comment. Z was rounding the corner. “Where’s Joaquin?”
“I needed a minute with you,” she began. “Did you want children?”
He scowled. “Why are we talking about this now?”
She crossed her arms. “Daddy?—”
“Your mom?—”
“Liliana,” Brit pushed back. “Mom is dead, remember?”
He sighed. “Liliana wanted children. I’d been focused on my career until she left us.” He paused. “What’s this all about?”
“Joaquin is my person, and I’m his. He loves kids and he wants to be a dad. Years ago, I decided I wasn’t having children. Not because I don’t like them, but because my own childhood was—” she paused for the right word.
“It was what it was, Britain,” Z said. “If you don’t want to be a mom?—”
“Only because of how badly Liliana messed me up.”
“Children are a lifetime commitment.” Z put his arm around her, guiding her back to the exam room. “You feel their joy, their pain, their fears. Their wins are yours, their failures and losses are too. If you have a reliable, trusted partner, it’s something you do together. There are no guarantees, we know that, but if you want to be a mom—because it’s somethingyouwant—don’t let Liliana’s bad decisions affect yours.”
He stopped, offered an encouraging smile.
She hugged him. “I’m glad she left. In the end, we got the better parent.”
