Page 135 of The Golden Hour

Honey tilts her head back to look up at him and thinks this is the closest they have been like this in so long. The golden sunlight hits the back of Mason’s head, showing the red through his dark hair that is no doubt from Marlene. The light makes his hazel eyes look more green than brown, and the expression on his face is almost serene.

Her husband has always been handsome, but for some reason, right now, he’s positively devastating.

“It was things that would satisfy me,” Mason says, scoffing. “Things that are fleeting and temporary and just fucking bullshit. No. I don’t want that, Honey. You asked me the right question.”

Honey frowns. “What question?”

“If I were happy in the ED,” Mason says with a shrug. “No. I’m not. But more than that, it’s not a healthy environment for me. For us. Not if I want to be a father to Daisy and the husband you deserved all along. I don’t want to be an emergency physician, and I won’t be.”

So slowly, Mason lifts his right hand, palm up, and holds it between them.

And Honey, after hesitating for only a moment, places her left hand in his.

His thumb brushes over her bare ring finger. Her fingers swelled so much that her wedding and engagement rings had to be cut off. She does not really know where they are now, but honestly, she is not bothered.

Honey eyes his finger, with his wedding ring still there.

Those pieces of gold were nothing but a symbol of a marriage that fractured beyond repair. Mason wore his ring, but he did not honor and defend their marriage. Honey’s ring had to be cut off of her almost too late because she kept holding on and hoping.

She’s not the same Honey.

And he’s not the same Mason.

They’re two very different people.

They’re Daisy’s parents.

But she likes who she’s becoming, and she likes who Mason is becoming.

She realizes that this is the first time since she woke up in that hospital that she’s even considering a future with Mason. And his next words seriously crumble the thick, brick layer she built around her heart.

“I just want to be your husband,” Mason says, his voice thick. He smiles wetly, his eyes shimmering and his voice cracking when he says, “I just want you.”

Honey exhales shakily, looking into Mason’s eyes and finding nothing but love, truth, honesty, and…

Hope.

“I know, I should have spoken to you first,” Mason says through clenched teeth, “but they wanted me to get you to drop the lawsuit.”

Honey’s eyes go wide.

“You…”

“They told me,” Mason says.

Guilt climbs up Honey’s throat. “I’m⁠⁠—”

“Don’t apologize,” Mason says softly, grin on his face. “I know why you didn’t tell me.”

“I found the flash drive,” Honey blurts. Then adds with a small grin. “I know why you didn’t tell me.”

Mason chuckles, and his thumb gently strokes the back of her hand still in his.

“Even without talking⁠⁠—”

She finishes. “—we’re still working together.”

They share a smile, the warmth of the fall sun, the warmth of the moment, wrapping them in an impermeable bubble.