Chapter 8
Dinner at Lila’s was perfect.
James showed up ten minutes early.
He brought a bottle of non-alcoholic sparkling cider for me. A box of Lila’s favorite chocolates. And a tiny little baseball onesie for Liam.
Liam was three months old.
He could hold his head up. He smiled all the time. He had my dad’s eyes.
James sat on the floor with him for two hours.
He made silly faces. He read him a board book about trucks. He changed a dirty diaper without even being asked.
Liam loved him.
He laughed so hard he snort-laughed when James made a duck face.
I watched them from the kitchen.
Lila leaned against the counter next to me.
“He’s different,” she said. “I can see it.”
“I know,” I said.
“Are you going to give him a chance?” she asked.
I didn’t answer right away.
I watched James lift Liam over his head. Liam squealed in delight.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I want to. But what if I let him back in and he lets me down again?”
Lila put her hand on my arm.
“People can change,” she said. “Your dad always said that. Second chances are for people who earn them. And he’s earning it. Every single day.”
She was right.
For the next six months, James showed up.
Every single day.
He came over at seven a.m. to take Liam so I could get ready for work.
He picked him up from daycare every afternoon.
He took him to doctor’s appointments. To music class. To the park.
He never missed a bedtime.
He never made excuses.
He never asked for anything in return.
At work, I thrived.
Hale Tech launched three new products. We doubled our revenue. We opened offices in three new cities.
The board named me “Most Innovative CEO of the Year.”
I dedicated the award to my dad. And to Liam.
James came to the ceremony.
He sat in the front row with Lila. He held Liam. He cheered the loudest when my name was called.
Afterward, he brought me flowers.
Yellow daisies.
The same ones he’d brought to the hospital.
“You were amazing,” he said.
“Thank you,” I said.
Liam reached for me. I took him.
He was getting so big.
“Clara,” James said. He took a deep breath. “I’ve been thinking. The restraining order against my mom is permanent. She’s not getting out for eleven more years. The company is yours. Liam is safe.”
He paused.
“I was wondering,” he said. “If you’d be open to us trying again. Not jumping back into anything. Just… dating. Like we did when we first met. No pressure. No expectations. Just us. Getting to know each other again.”
My heart skipped a beat.
I thought about the boy I’d fallen in love with.
The one who’d stayed up with me when my dad died.
The one who’d held my hand through every scary moment.
The one who’d stood by me through the trial.
The one who’d shown up every single day for six months without fail.
“I’d like that,” I said.
James’s face broke into the biggest smile I’d ever seen.
“Really?” he said.
“Really,” I said. “But one rule.”
“Anything.”
“No secrets,” I said. “Ever. If something is wrong, we talk about it. No hiding. No letting other people tell us what to do.”
“Never again,” he said. “I promise. No secrets. Ever.”
Our first date was a week later.
Lila watched Liam.
James took me to the tiny Italian restaurant where we’d had our first date.
He opened every door. He pulled out my chair. He listened to me talk about work for an hour like it was the most interesting thing he’d ever heard.
He didn’t push.
He didn’t try to kiss me goodnight.
He just hugged me. Soft. Gentle.
“I had the best time,” he said.
“Me too,” I said.
We dated for six months.
Slow. Steady.
We went to movies. To concerts. To long walks around the lake with Liam in the stroller.
I learned the new James.
The one who made his own decisions.
The one who stood up for himself.
The one who loved me and Liam with everything he had.
One night, after Liam was asleep, we sat on the porch of the house I’d bought— a new one, far from the old one with the blue streamers.
James put his arm around me.
I leaned my head on his shoulder.
“I love you,” he said.
It was the first time he’d said it since the baby shower.
I looked up at him.
“I love you too,” I said.
He kissed me.
Soft. Slow.
May you like
Like he was scared I’d break.
For the first time in a year, I felt whole.
