Page 45 of Puck, Marry, Thrill

“I’m grabbing Zachary and heading out on the ice – get ready to get your picture, Sweetheart,” he said instead.

And then he did just that.

He skated over to where his son stood, little arms outstretched, eyes wide with excitement. Kenneth scooped him up and perched him on his shoulder, their laughter echoing together.

“Hang on to Daddy, buddy,” Kenneth said softly, his voice catching just a little in his throat. He wasn’t sure if it was the cold air or the swell of emotion, but he knew this moment – this simple, ordinary moment – was one he’d remember for the rest of his life.

His eyes were locked on Jamie as he spoke as if some magnetic pull wouldn’t let him look away. She stood just outside the rink, her hands clasped together in front of her, her hair a tousled mess from the wind, damp from a flurry that had caught them all earlier. Beautiful. Radiant. And entirely unaware of the way she unraveled him with every soft smile, every glance that lingered too long.

“Your hair is all wet,” Zachary announced. His voice, innocent and full of concern, pulled Kenneth back into the moment. He looked down to see those intelligent brown eyes so like his own, blinking up at him. “I don’t want to fall down…”

The words hit Kenneth square in the chest, full of excitement, trust, and love, and he swallowed hard. Even if his kid was scared of falling, he trusted him implicitly.

“I won’t fall, kiddo. You’ve got me.”

Then came the pleading, the joy of a little boy who was learning what it meant to feel safe, and cherished, and unafraid. He hefted him on his shoulders, listening to Zachary’s excitement and laughter while Jamie snapped her photos.

“Daddy, do a circle! Skate in a circle…”

Kenneth chuckled, the sound low and filled with warmth. He brushed a wind-tossed curl from his son's forehead and nodded.

“Only if you hang on, buddy,” he replied with a smile, looking up again—always, always looking for her.

And there she was. Jamie.

He didn’t know how she did it—how she could be so still and yet command his entire world. How her presence could stretch across the ice and wind its way through him, wrapping around his heart like a lifeline.

Kenneth’s smile deepened as Zachary squealed in delight, clinging tighter to his neck. They spun gently, his skates gliding carefully over the smooth surface, and Kenneth couldn't stop marveling at the transformation he'd seen in his son. Zachary had always been a quiet child, cautious and sensitive, his world a little too big and a little too uncertain after the chaos of the divorce. But now—now he laughed. Now, he wanted circles. Now, he wanted more.

And it was because ofher.

Jamie hadn’t just been good for him—she had breathed new life into both of them. She'd brought laughter back to their home. She filled the empty corners of rooms that had once felt hollow. Her presence was like a soft rain after a long drought. Healing. Necessary. Unavoidable.

Kenneth felt his chest ache, his emotions coiling tight beneath his ribs. The odds of two strangers finding each other like this—by chance, bound by a piece of paper, it was absurd. A fake marriage — a solution born out of desperation and timing with a touch of madness.

But it hadn’t stayed fake for long.

He was in love with her. Fully, deeply, painfully.

And he wanted her to know.

Not in passing. Not in a moment of weakness. But trulyknow—in her bones, in her heart—that this wasn’t pretend anymore. Not to him. Not when she looked at him, and the world stopped turning for just a second. Not when she laughed, and he felt like a man reborn. Not when he lay awake at night, longing not for her body—but for her heart.

Her thoughts. Her dreams. Her fears.

This had to be more than attraction. More than stolen moments and nervous glances. He didn’t want to be a placeholder, didn’t want to be some temporary comfort. He wanted to be her future. Her partner. Her safe place.

But what if she didn’t want that?

The thought pierced him. The idea of Jamie smiling at him, loving his son, helping him rebuild... only to walk away tore at something raw and bleeding inside him. He remembered those first few months after Candi left—the silence of the house, the relentless self-doubt, the fear that he was too broken to ever try again. But this?Jamie?

Losing her would be worse. It would destroy him.

And Zachary.

They were both tethered to her now, helplessly and completely. She had come into their lives like a gift they didn’t know they needed—and now he couldn’t imagine a day without her.

Kenneth blinked hard against the sting in his eyes as he swung around, positioning Zachary in front of him. He gently placed his son’s tiny sneakers on the ice, careful to keep him balanced. The little boy laughed, holding tightly to his gloved fingers, and Kenneth guided him forward slowly, proudly.

---