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“I'm back?” It’s a ridiculous thing to say, so I decide to make myself look even stupider and add, "Forever.”
The look of horror on her face doesn’t ease, so I start babbling. “The Macaws want me full-time, so I said yeah, why not? I thought it sounded like a great idea because then I’d be able to see you again. Not that that’s the only reason, obviously. Like, you’re great — but the team is too. But you were part of it. If you want to be, I mean, because obviously relationships are for losers, and I’m not saying I’d want that with you. Well, unless?—”
“I'm pregnant,” she blurts out, stopping me dead in my tracks.
“Huh?” is all I can say.
She takes a shaky breath and closes her eyes. “I'm pregnant,” she repeats.
So my ears weren’t deceiving me. My heart in my mouth, I ask her, “Who's the father?”
She bites her lip and doesn’t say anything. Our eyes meet, locking together like we’re in a showdown. I point hesitantly to myself, and she nods, letting out a watery laugh, her eyes brimming with tears. “I sure hope you just meant what you said about coming back for me. Because you’re gonna be a daddy.”
“I’m going to be a what?” I say so loudly that the neighbors must hear. I don’t care about that, though. I feel like I’ve been hit by a train. The train is carrying good news, but the shock is still that big.
“It’s yours,” she says again. “It’s your baby.”
“I don’t know what to say,” I whisper. Then I shake my head, feeling stupid again.
“Are you upset?” she asks nervously, a single tear running down her face.
I cup her cheek in my hand and brush the tear away with my thumb. “Are you kidding me? I’m over the moon. I love you, Olivia. I’m so sorry I never said that to you before. I’m so sorry. I never let you know what you meant to me. I just hope you feel the same. Otherwise, I’m gonna look really, really stupid.”
She lets out a hoarse laugh of relief. “Yes, Miles. Yes. I hate how much I’ve loved you for such a long time.”
“So you mean…? But I thought…?” I frown in confusion, not quite able to take all this in.
“Miles, I think we’ve both been really dumb. I only told you that I didn’t want a relationship because I never in a million years would have thought you’d want someone like me.”
All the gears are slotting into place, and I want to kick myself for not having thought any of this through any harder, any sooner. “I love you,” I whisper again, leaning in to kiss her, taking her face in both hands. The kiss is salty and raw, but it’s the best kiss I've ever had. It means too much not to be.
When we split apart, I wrap both arms around her and lift her up into the air, spinning her around. “Be careful! I’m pregnant!”
“Yeah, but I bet you’d tell me off for thinking you were easily damaged too.”
She shrugs. “I might not be fragile. But I do feel sick all the time lately.” I settle her back on her feet and give her a sheepish grin, still holding her tight in my arms.
“So,” I say, kissing her cheek and whispering into her ear, “can I come in?” She makes a little noise of confusion and I continue. “Well, unless you let me, I’m kind of technically homeless right now.”
“Yes, of course you can,” she says, hitting me gently in the arm. “This can be your home for as long as you want it to be.” She backs up, scrubs her eyes with her hands and then looks at me again. “Where’s all your stuff?”
“Well, about that…” I say, running a hand through my hair. “It turns out you actually can’t turn a cargo ship around.”
Olivia grins, taking my hand. “I'm sure I can fix you up with something. Come in. Come home.”
I don’t resist in the slightest, letting her lead me in and shut the door behind me. I let a long breath out, and as I sweep her up into another kiss, my chest loosens for the first time in a long time.
Home. I like that.
EPILOGUE
OLIVIA
The crowd roars around us, and I gently take hold of Leo’s chubby wrists so I can wave his hands in the air. “Yay! Daddy scored a goal!” I cheer, despite the fact that our thirteen-month-old can neither understand what I’m saying nor really hear me at all because of the ear defenders clamped to his head. He looks adorable like this, his tiny feet kicking for what I can only assume is joy.
There are only seconds left in the game, and this goal has just taken the Macaws from a tie that would have kept them in the middle of the league to an epic victory that’s going to shoot them up the table. And it’s all because of Miles.
The ball gets kicked back into play, but the referee blows the final whistle before anything else can happen. Again, the crowd cheers for the home team, delighted to know the Macaws are heading towards the top.
