Chapter 152: If only
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, the sun glinting in his hair. "What about you, Miss Shepherd? What’s your drink of choice at a royal tea party?"
"Lukewarm mystery juice with a side of half-chewed biscuit." She held up a slobbery cracker, which Audrey had abandoned mid-snack. "Parenting is glamorous, didn’t you know?"
He laughed, watching her gently wipe Audrey’s hands. There was something magnetic about the way Mara moved, the effortless blend of strength and softness. The mother. The warrior. The woman who had survived so much and still found a way to smile.
"You’re really good with her," he said softly to think she didn’t even know if she was ready to be a mum. Ethan should have been here, her son should have been alive. That was the life she had dreamt of and wanted.
Mara looked up, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek. "I try."
"No," he said, his voice more serious now. "You are. You don’t try; you are good. Watching you two like this... it feels like home." She swallowed. Something warm stirred in her chest — too warm. She glanced down at Audrey, who was now babbling to her stuffed bunny.
"I never imagined this," Mara said. "All of it. Laughing like this. Being... safe."
"With me?" Rafael asked gently.
She looked at him, her eyes locking with his. "Yes. With you."
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For a heartbeat, the air between them changed. Charged. She could feel it, the tension, the softness, the wanting, but neither of them moved, not yet.