Page 59 of Wild Heart

Then Mason blinked. His lips parted slightly. “You’re…?”

“Yes.” Her voice cracked. “I found out last week. I wasn’t sure… I mean, I’ve been sure. Just not sure how to tell you.”

The wind tugged gently at her hair as the truth landed between them. Mason exhaled hard. A long, stunned silence followed. Natalie’s chest rose and fell with quick, shallow breaths. She wrapped her arms around herself.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner,” she said, her voice raw. “I didn’t know how. Things between us… they were already so fragile. And I didn’t want this to feel like more weight on top of everything. I didn’t want to feel like a complication.”

“You’re not a complication,” Mason said, stepping closer.

His eyes shone, though with what, she couldn’t tell. Shock. Awe. Maybe fear.

“I just…” he hesitated, running a hand through his hair. “This is… I didn’t expect…”

“I didn’t either,” she said, and suddenly her voice cracked wide open. “But it’s real. And it’s happening. And I don’t want to do it alone.”

Mason looked like he wanted to reach for her, but hesitated. “You want this baby, with me?”

Natalie pressed a hand to her belly, her fingers trembling. “Yes. I do.”

That changed something in his face. His posture softened. The line of his jaw unclenched.

“Then I want to be there.”

She looked up at him, tears brimming now. “It’s not just about the baby. It’s about us. About everything we haven’t said.”

“I know,” he said. “And we’ll say it. All of it. If you’re willing.”

She nodded slowly. “I’m willing.”

He reached out, but still didn’t touch her. Instead, he held out his hand.

She stared at it for a long moment, then placed hers in his.

It was not a perfect ending. It was a beginning.

25

The fire in the hearth was burning low, just glowing coals now, slow-pulsing embers casting warmth into the corners of the private cabin nestled on the edge of the forest. Outside, the sky was lavender and rose, tinged with dusk. The first faint calls of owls echoed through the thinning pines, and frost kissed the windows like lace pressed to glass.

Inside, Natalie sat on the worn brown leather couch, her hands folded tightly in her lap, her fingertips faintly chilled despite the heat from the fire. She could hear her heart in her ears, steady but unrelenting. Her mouth was dry, her thoughts a thrum of anticipation and fear. No matter how many times she’d rehearsed this moment, nothing could settle her nerves now that it was real.

Across from her, Olivia and Davey shared the matching armchair, Olivia perched carefully, her cane beside her, and Davey leaning forward slightly, his long legs stretched out, arms crossed over his chest. His eyes flicked from Natalie to Mason and back again, sensing something in the air.

Mason sat beside Natalie, his hands resting on his knees.Every now and then, his fingers twitched, and he glanced toward her, but he didn’t speak. He was letting her lead. She had asked him for that.

The cabin was quiet except for the slow creak of settling wood and the faint pop of the fire. Natalie swallowed. It wasn’t just the words themselves. It was the moment. The pause before the fall. The air heavy with something about to shift.

She glanced at Mason, who gave her a small nod. His eyes, dark and steady, held no pressure. Just support. His quiet patience wrapped around her like a blanket that both soothed and stirred her anxiety.

She turned back to Olivia and Davey and took a breath that felt bigger than her lungs.

“I’m pregnant,” she said.

The words landed softly, like snowfall. But they stirred the room as though thunder had rolled through it. Olivia smiled, there to support her son, already knowing Natalie’s condition. “This is wonderful news.” She turned to Davey, “Davey, you’re going to be a big brother.”

Then Olivia stood, slowly, carefully, but with purpose and crossed the small space between them. Her face, usually composed with strength and a touch of mischief, had softened into something maternal and luminous.

“Oh, sweetheart,” she whispered, wrapping Natalie in her arms. “This is beautiful news.”

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