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“Still… there’s a chance, right?”
“I hope so, but I won’t know until I try.” Her heart ached when she thought about how badly she’d once wanted children. She’d expected to do four years of college, reunite with Max, start their family and live happily ever after with their houseful of kids. That was her only dream until surviving took precedence over everything. “Listen,” she said softly, “it might be better for both of us not to get all caught up in the nostalgia and think we can pick right up where we left off like nothing ever came between us.”
“Nothing did come between us. We weren’t apart because we wanted to be.”
“Right, but a lot has happened, and it would be a risk for you to get involved with me again.”
“How so?”
“Well, my life is going to be a bit of a roller-coaster ride for the next four years. Every fever, cold, sore throat and bout of fatigue will be cause for panic. I’m not sure I can have babies, and you always wanted a big family as much as I did.”
“My dreams have changed as I’ve gotten older. I’ve learned to be satisfied with what I have, which is an awful lot. If I had you, too, that would make everything perfect.”
Before she could respond, a server brought their salad and pizzas to the table.
“Can I get you anything else?” the young woman asked.
“No, thank you,” Max said after glancing at Lexi, who shook her head.
“Enjoy your dinner.”
Max put slices of pizza on each of their plates as Lexi put dressing on the salad after removing the onions.
“You still forget to ask for no onions,” Max said, smiling.
“Every time.”
“Did I go too far with what I said before the food came?” he asked. “You looked shocked.”
“You might’ve shocked me a little, but in a good way.”
“You were saying how much has changed here, but one thing hasn’t. You were it for me ten years ago, and you still are.”
After he said that,Lexi could barely breathe, let alone eat. She picked at her pizza and salad and chased every bite with a sip of water to get the food past the huge lump in her throat.You were it for me ten years ago, and you still are.
He’d said the only thing she’d wanted to hear during the awful ordeal of her illness, so why did she feel more upset than elated?
“What’s wrong?” Max asked, tuning in to her distress.
“Nothing.”
“You never could lie to me, Lex.”
He knew her so well. He always had. Hesawher the way no one else ever had. Not that she’d dated all that much other than him, but that feeling of being known was so much a part of who they’d been together, and it still was.
“Could we take the food to go?”
“Sure.” He got up to get boxes and a bag and had them on their way in a matter of minutes, leaving with a wave for Ella’s family.
Max helped her into the car and handed her the bag of food.
On the ride back to his place, neither of them said anything, which only added to her anxiety.
She was jolted out of her thoughts when Max slammed on the brakes, and the truck spun in a full circle. The bag of food flew off her lap and hit the dash before falling to the floor.
“Holy shit,” Max said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, you?”
