Page 24 of A Prescription to My Heart

“They want to take her,” he rasps. “They think she’d be… better off. They think I can’t take care of my own daughter. Because I’m not a mother. Not a wife. I’m not… Lisa.”

I can’t even imagine what that must feel like. I swallow. “That’s… unbelievably unfair.”

Soren huffs a short, bitter laugh. “Doesn’t matter. They’ll fight me on this. They’ll use every excuse they can.” He shakes his head, looking away. “And if I lose—”

His voice cuts off.

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him like this—this exposed. Like he’s standing on the edge of a cliff, one wrong step from going over.

I shift closer. “You’re not going to lose her, Soren.”

His throat bobs. He doesn’t say anything.

The silence stretches, thick with unspoken words neither of us can bring ourselves to say.

Then, before I can think better of it, I blurt, “Well, I guess you could always just marry someone. That’d solve the problem, right?”

His head snaps toward me so fast I almost laugh. I was joking.

Obviously.

But the way he’s looking at me—brows drawn, eyes narrowed, like he’s actuallyconsideringit—makes my stomach flip.

“Are you…?” he starts, voice low.

I hold up my hands. “Kidding. I waskidding.”

Soren’s expression doesn’t change.

I laugh, a little nervous now. “You’re not seriously thinking about that, are you?”

He still doesn’t say anything. But he stares at me, too long. “You are!” I accuse, eyes widening. But not only that…

Oh my gosh.

“Me?” I cry, a flush rushing into my face. My heart rate ticks up.

Soren blinks, like he’s snapping out of something. “I…” He exhales sharply. “Forget it.”

“Forget it? Forget what?” I demand. “The fact that you just seriously consideredmarryingme for, what? Legal purposes?”

“It was a thought, Talia.”

“Abadthought.”

He sighs heavily. “I’m aware.”

I cross my arms. “Well, now I need to know. Were you mentally planning the whole thing? Imagining the courthouse, the paperwork, the—”

“Talia.”

I smirk. “You were.”

He glares at me. I press my lips together, fighting a grin.

The tension has shifted now, something lighter creeping in. Soren’s still tense, still tired, but there’s less weight in his shoulders. And, surprisingly, I feel lighter as well. Still.

I shake my head. “Yeah, no. Not happening.”

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