He nods once. “Yeah… no. Not really.”

My chest clenches.

“I thought I’d be fine, but my anxiety is through the roof. About the surgery, yeah, but more about what comes after. We just found our way back to each other, and already we’re staring down another stretch of distance before we’ve even had the chance to find our rhythm.”

I squeeze his hand. “It’s temporary, Alex. We’ve been through worse than distance.”

“Yeah, but you’re building your life there—your business, your future—in a place that doesn’t include me.”

His words sink deep into my ribs. Because the truth is that I’ve been thinking the same thing.

Why am I pouring myself into building a life in Charleston when the person I love will be nine thousand miles away?

I stroke my thumb across the back of his hand. “That’s something we’re going to talk about. Not today, but soon.”

He nods. “Yeah. Soon.”

He shifts, reaching for his phone on the tray beside him. “I should call Tinā and Dad before they take me back.”

“You better if you know what’s good for you.”

He unlocks the screen, taps FaceTime, and props the phone up as the call connects. Malie’s face appears first, eyes going glassy when she sees him in a hospital gown. “Oh, Aleki––”

Alexander appears over her shoulder, already frowning. “Took you long enough to call.”

Alex huffs a small laugh. “What? Miss me already, old man?”

His dad snorts. “Nah, but I miss kicking your ass on the golf course.”

Alex scoffs. “Once. You kicked my ass once. And only because I was distracted by this one.”

I feign offense. “Hey, don’t blame me for your bad golfing skills.”

“I have skills.”

Alexander shrugs. “Distraction or not, a win’s a win.”

Malie swats at him. “Oh, stop it, you two.”

The laughter continues, and softens into something quieter, warmer. Malie’s eyes find mine, and her expression shifts—gentle, full of gratitude.

“Magnolia… thank you for loving my son. And for being the one beside him right now.”

My throat tightens. “Loving him is easy. As for taking care of him…” I glance at Alex with a teasing smile. “We’ll see how good of a patient he turns out to be.”

Alexander laughs. “I’m afraid you’ve got your hands full with that one. He hasn’t been still for more than a minute since the day he was born. Came out ready to fight and hasn’t stopped moving since.”

Malie lifts a brow, teasing. “I can’t wait to hear how the bedpan duty goes. You’ll earn your stripes with that one.”

I groan. “I’m billing him for every accident.”

Alex rolls his eyes, grinning. “I regret this call already.”

The laughter lingers long enough to settle everyone’s nerves before Malie’s smile softens.