“I might be a little late today,” he said, not looking up. “I have that special patient at the end of my shift.”
I let out a breath. I knew what that meant: Vincent Leone was making a trip over to Mercy. His Highness himself, the man Dean had to roll out the red carpet for, pull all kinds of strings, call in all kinds of favors, all so everything could be done off the books.
It was obnoxious, but it was the price he paid for our safety.
“I’ll wait, if you want.”
“Nah, go home. Enjoy a little time alone in the new place.”
I smiled and glanced up at the ceiling. We moved into a house not far from Mercy three weeks ago, and got married a week later. After the wedding, which was small and tasteful and obscenely expensive because Dean wouldn’t settle for anything less than perfect, we went on a honeymoon traveling through Europe.
And now we were settling into our life together.
The thought of the empty house sent a strange pang through me. I’d been feeling it off and on for a while now, for the past year really, as we settled into our life together. We talked about our family sometimes, but I still couldn’t have babies, and that would never change. And yet the idea of always having an empty house filled me with something like dread, and I wanted to change that.
“I think we should adopt.” The words spilled out in a tumble. He blinked at me, clearly taken off guard. “Sorry. I know this is random, but I’ve been thinking a lot about it.”
“Okay.” He leaned back in his chair. “Let’s start the process tonight.”
“Really?” I felt a laugh bubble up and burst from my lips. “You’re okay with that?”
“Of course I am. I want a family with you, and adoption’s the best option.”
“We could do a surrogate.”
He waved a hand. “There are babies that need a family out there right now. Let’s adopt.”
I chewed on my lip before walking over and kissing him again. I lingered there, tasting the coffee, his toothpaste, him, and I kept thinking, this was right, this what perfect. I never expected something like this—never thought I’d be with a man like him, so willing to compromise, to wake up early to cook me breakfast, insatiable in bed, protective and incredible. I wanted more of him, and sometimes I felt greedy, but I couldn’t help myself.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“I’m positive. I’ve been waiting for you to bring it up, honestly. I didn’t want to be mention it too soon.”
“I’m ready. The house is perfect. We can start setting up the nursery this weekend.”
“We’ll go buy more baby stuff then we’ll ever need.”
“Perfect.” I kissed him again. “I really should get going.”
“Tonight, after my special patient, we’ll start looking into adoption.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
I nodded and walked to the door. I looked back at him, at his neat office, at his handsome face and muscular arms, and I felt lucky—blessed, really.
“I love you,” I said.
“I love you, too.”
I turned and left, walking down the quiet hall, and took the stairs down. I went to my station, sat down, and got to work.
And all day I thought about our future: a baby, our baby, our little family. We’d have this future together, the future I never thought was possible for me. But because of him, I was less angry all the time, I didn’t hate the world as much as I used to, and seeing the scar in the mirror didn’t send me down a shame spiral that took hours to crawl out of. Now, I felt beautiful, because he treated me like I was.
I couldn’t have asked for more. I never dreamed of having half so much.
“Fiona? Are you okay?” Jenny frowned at me a little. “You keep smiling.”
“Sorry,” I said, shaking my head. “Thinking about the honeymoon.”
She grinned. “Lucky you. Tell me all about it.”
“Sit down. I got some stories you’ll love.”
She sat, leaned back, and we started chatting.