Page 83 of My Ex's Best Friend

"What?"

"Yeah. I mean, it makes more sense logistically," she says. "The office is closer, it would shorten my commute time, and I'll get to see you all the time. I'm sure the baby will appreciate that too."

I can't hold it in anymore. I put my arms around her waist and spin her around.

Kiera laughs, hanging on to my neck for dear life.

"Jake," she says, "You should put me down now or I might end up getting sick over you."

"I don't care, nothing can bring me down right now," I say but I bring her down to the ground, kissing her on either cheek. "You can't imagine how happy I am."

"I can see that," she says, laughing through her tears.

"But I have to ask you again, you're sure about this, right?" she says. "I don't put this on you if you don't want it. The child is a big responsibility, and you're so busy with work."

"I'll cut down on my hours."

"Don't do that," she says.

"Why not?" I say.

"Because I'm not going to cut down on mine, and don't you dare tell me that I'll have to step down from my responsibilities."

"Why would I say that?"

"I don't know—employers are hard on their pregnant employees," she says.

"Well, I’m not. We have three months of paid maternity leave and an option to do a sabbatical for two years. You'll join whenever you want to, and your pay will be in par with what the peers are being paid."

"Wow, I have no idea why people warn you not to date your boss," Kiera says, rolling her eyes. "Hopefully, I don't have to worry about that for seven more months."

"We're not taking any chances, though," I say. "We need to start looking for a doctor, a nutritionist, and whatever else you'll need. I'll hire someone to look into that."

"You want to pay money to someone to tell you how to care for your unborn child? Such a typical millionaire thing to do," she says. "I'll take care of it. And I'll keep working on the museum project."

I open my mouth to say something, but she cuts me off.

"No matter how long it takes," she finishes. "That's the only way I'll agree to come live with you."

"Hey, that's not fair."

"I just wanted to make things clear before we did this."

"We're doing this, Kiera," I say. "And if you want to work from home—"

"I don't want any special treatment, I'm fine. Although I would like to go pee again."

"You can go," I say. "I'll go by your place later to get your things, and I'll look up Yelp reviews myself—" I say, stretching on the last word. "—and find you the best doctor in the vicinity."

She shakes her head, but she is smiling. And that fills my heart to the brim. This is the woman I want by my side forever.

“Kiera,” I cannot hold it in anymore. “I love you. I’ve always loved you, I never stopped even when we were apart.”

She inhales sharply. “Jake—”

“I know it’s all a little too much. You don’t have to say anything.”

She starts to shake her head before she finally says,

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