Carrie had insisted on seeing where Axel lived, so we had brought her to his apartment after the zoo. By the time the grand tour had reached upstairs, she was snoozing against his shoulder. He’d lain her on his bed to nap, and we went downstairs to decompress from the day. And now, he was hovering over me, his mouth so close to mine, I could feel his breath against my face.

“I’m so afraid you’re going to get a big whiff of this parenting thing and decide it’s not for you,” I whispered honestly.

“Not going to happen. I’m here for you, and I’m here for Carrie. For the long haul,” he said, rubbing his thumb over my cheek and kissing the corner of my mouth. “Forever.”

“Even after today?” I asked.

He kissed my cheek and smiled against my skin. “Especially after today. Seeing our little girl smile and laugh and have fun. God, Blaire. You have no idea how happy that made me. No one has ever brought me so much joy. Present company excluded, of course,” he said, finding my mouth with his.

I breathed a sigh of relief. He’s not running, Blaire.

Axel crawled over the couch toward me and pulled my head to his chest. We lay silent for a while as I listened to his strong heartbeat beneath my ear. He finally spoke, a soft, soothing rumble in his chest. “Blaire, I want you to get a divorce so that we can date officially instead of discreetly.”

I looked up at him in surprise. “A divorce?”

“Of course. Didn’t you tell me that marrying Evan was supposed to be a temporary arrangement?”

“Well, I… yes… but, we have an apartment together. Am I supposed to kick Evan out? Or leave and try to find somewhere else for me and Carrie to live? It’s more complicated than just doing it, Ax. Evan’s been very good to us, and I can’t just hurt him like that.”

“But you don’t mind hurting me?” he asked with a scowl.

Shit.

“Axel, I don’t want to hurt anyone, but I have to think about what’s best for Carrie.”

“You wouldn’t have to search far for somewhere to live, Blaire. You could both move in here with me. And being with both of her parents… how could that not be what’s best for Carrie?”

I stared into his eyes and saw that he was deathly serious. “You would really want us to move in with you?”

“Of course. I love Carrie, and I don’t want to be a part-time dad who just sees her a few days a week. And you know how I feel about you.”

“But you’ve only known her for a few days. How…”