After our visit with Fallon’s parents the other morning, she hasn’t given me a straight answer about my proposal. “I meant what I said. I could use your help with the business, and I do believe you have a good eye for it,” I tell Fallon as we sit in the doctor’s office, waiting for what feels like an eternity for someone to come in and see us.

“I appreciate the offer, Parks, but I can’t keep depending on you to fix all the problems in my life.”

“Is that really how you see it?” I ask her, holding on to her hand. “I’d love working with you everyday; it’d be a dream come true.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, don’t you think?”

“It would be amazing, and I don’t want to lie to my parents or worse, let them down. You really think I have an eye for it?”

“I do, I’ve always told you that. And the pictures you took the other day on our hike were spot on, that’s raw talent, you can’t teach that, baby.”

Her mouth spans from ear to ear, and I lean in to kiss her, but there is a knock on the door.

“Ms. Wrenshaw, thank you for waiting,” the spunky woman says as she walks into the exam room.

“Please, call me Fallon.”

“All right, Fallon. I’m Dr. Cornelius, and who’s this lucky guy?” she asks, looking at me.

“Parks, the baby’s dad.” I shake her hand as she sits on a small stool opposite the two of us. I still have a hard time lying about being the father. Yes, I want it more than anything, and both of us know Leo is not fit to be a parent, but it doesn’t make it any easier.

“Well, congratulations you two. Is this your first?” Fallon nods. “Do you know how far along you are?”

“Not really, the hospital never did an ultrasound and my periods are always screwy.”

“All right, we can measure your little peanut today. How have you been feeling?”

“Good.”

“Great, that’s good news. You wanna lie back?” She adjusts the table, and Fallon lies back and then lifts her shirt. “Can you unbutton your pants, please?” Fallon does so, and the small glimpse I get of the top of her sex has all the blood rushing to the tip of my shaft.

Jesus, not here.

“This might be cold, I’m sorry.”

The doctor squeezes out some blue goo on Fallon’s tummy, powers up the machine, and then starts to move a wand thing around her stomach. All three of us watch the screen, waiting for the first glimpse of the baby.

“There it is,” the doctor says, and man is she right. Covered across the screen is the tiny resemblance of a child, Fallon’s child.

“Is it healthy?” she asks.

The doctor moves the probe all around and then says, “Yeah, looks good.”

She points to the tiny flicker that is the baby’s heartbeat before clicking a few buttons on the machine. The sound of our baby’s heart pulsating fills the room, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything more amazing in my life.

“Is that the baby?” Fallon whispers as if she’s afraid to break the magic of this moment.

“Absolutely, the heart rate is normal, and all your blood work came back great,” she says, which is a relief. Fallon has been stressing about the drinking she’d done before she found out she was pregnant, but the hospital reassured us and clearly so is Dr. Cornelius.

“How far along is she?”

“By the size, I’d say about ten to eleven weeks.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, so you guys are about in your second trimester. I’d like to see you in two weeks to check the progress, and as long as you stay on this track and are feeling well, then we can stick to once a month visits.”

The doctor wipes the goop off Fallon’s stomach, turns the monitor off, and then hands us a strip of pictures she printed during the exam.

“Thank you,” we both tell her, and she leaves the room.

“That’s great news, huh?” Fallon doesn’t answer in words—she just nods and stares at the pictures.

“Ready to eat. I’m starving. I’m sure you are, too.”

“God, yes.” She bites her lower lip between her teeth, and I help her off the table, then we head out of the doctor’s office, hand in hand, the way I’ve so quickly grown to love.

“Where do you want to eat?” I ask her as we walk out to the warm summer day.

“Anywhere.” She is staring at the pictures deep in thought, and eventually lets out a tiny sigh then turns to me. “This all suddenly feels real.”

“What do you mean?” I hold open the door to a small café, letting her walk ahead of me.

“The baby. It’s like before today, I really didn’t think I was pregnant.”

“I understand,” I tell her, as the hostess seats us by one of the windows in the back. “Thanks,” I tell her, pulling out Fallon’s chair.

After taking the seat across from her, I reach for the pictures she’s studying and can’t believe how big the baby already is. “Jesus, look at all those fingers and toes and shit.”

“I know. How crazy, huh?”

“Yeah.”

The waitress takes our drink order, and then we both open our menus, knowing we need to make a decision on lunch soon.

“What are you getting?” I ask Fallon as she quickly sets hers down.

“A bread bowl with soup.”

“Uhhh, let me guess, chicken noodle?”

She smiles, and I chuckle. I know everything there is to know about her. She rolls her eyes at my laughter. After I decide what I want to eat, I close my menu and lean forward on my elbows.

“You know that I meant what I said. I want you to work with me.”

“Yeah, but doing what?”

“I want you to help me run the photography business. Really I’m a bit overwhelmed and could really use your help. We’ll split everything fifty-fifty.”

“No way. You’ve worked your entire life to create that company and get it to where it is. I’m not just gonna take half of it.”

“I want to share it with you. Fallon, I love you, and that’s never going to change. I’m all in . . . forever.”