He looked away. “I always thought my happiness depended on having a family. You know, more kids. Brothers and sisters for Charlie. More babies to raise. That’s what I thought would make me happy.”

She felt her insides freeze up with apprehension. More babies to raise. Would she? Could she? “I don’t—”

“Something occurred to me,” he said.

Oh God, she thought. Oh no. She teetered. Could a person who never wanted kids be happy with a person who did want kids? There really was no room for compromise.

She pictured a future with him. Pictured being pregnant, her belly growing. The discomfort. The night feedings. The struggles and the joy. With Logan.

This was not a compromise. With all her heart, she yearned to fall in love with him. It was already happening. But could she want the same things he wanted? Don’t be afraid anymore, she told herself. When it’s right, you don’t have to be afraid. Maybe, she thought, it wasn’t the prospect of children that made her feel trapped but the way she approached a relationship and the way her partner treated her. Everything was different now. Everything. “Logan—”

“Let me finish.” He stroked her hair. “Listen. Everything I imagined when I thought about the future has changed. And it’s because of you. I want you to be my future. Not some image I had, not some concept in my head. You make me happy. You and me together—that’s what I want. Us.”

“I don’t understand. What are you saying?”

“That now when I think of family, I think of you. And Charlie. I don’t need any more than that.”

Her breath caught, and then for no reason she could fathom, she started to cry. “I feel exactly the same way.”

“You do?”

“But I changed my mind about something, too.”

“Darcy—”

“No, listen. I’ve been so scared, for so long. Scared of hurt and disappointment. Then I realized disappointment doesn’t kill you. Either it just teaches you not to hope...or it shows you how strong you can be.”

“I won’t hurt you, Darcy. I won’t disappoint you.”

She trusted that with all her heart. “I know,” she said. “I want the future with you, too. I want the family. I want us.” Declaring this to him made her feel both vulnerable and liberated. She put her arms around him, praying she would never have to let him go. “What I don’t know is if I can keep from disappointing you.”

“I’ve heard you’re a true believer. You told me so yourself.”

“Yes.”

“Then you have to believe wishes can come true.”

Epilogue

epilogue

One year later