Chapter 19
Dani
Dani knew something had changed the second Jonnas walked into the cabin that night.
The storm outside had finally broken, leaving the woods damp and quiet beyond the windows, but Jonnas still carried tension in every line of his body when he stepped through the door, until he saw her. Then all of it softened instantly.
“There’s my girl,” he breathed. Her heart squeezed painfully.
God, that phrase still undid her every single time.
Dani stood from the couch before he’d even fully set his keys down, and Jonnas crossed the room immediately like he couldn’t help himself—like being near her had become instinct.
His hands settled low on her waist before he kissed her slowly, and suddenly, Dani understood. Something had happened.
She pulled back slightly. “What’s wrong?”
Jonnas rested his forehead briefly against hers before exhaling slowly. “We found out who filed the complaint.”
Ice slid instantly through her stomach. “I thought that we already knew that it was Jessica,” she said.
His jaw tightened. “She did, but Dr. Harris filed a second complaint. He said that I took advantage of you and abused my position.” Recognition hit immediately.
Dr. Harris was the ER physician she’d spent months avoiding before hooking up with Jonnas.
The man always stood too close and cornered her during overnight shifts, asking why she wouldn’t “give him a chance.”
Her stomach rolled. “Oh, my God.”
Jonnas’s entire expression darkened the second he saw fear move across her face. “Baby girl—” His hands tightened gently against her waist. “He tried to make it look like I abused my position after finding out that he wanted you first.”
Humiliation crashed over her instantly. This entire nightmare happened because she rejected a man. Dani wrapped her arms tightly around herself. “I should’ve reported him.”
Jonnas went still. “Why didn’t you?” Because she didn’t think anyone would care, and because women learned early on that “uncomfortable” wasn’t enough to make trouble over.
Dani looked away instead of answering, and that seemed to be answer enough, apparently.
Something furious flickered across Jonnas’s face before he cupped her jaw gently.
“Hey,” he said. Her eyes lifted automatically. “There’s my girl.” The softness in his voice almost made her cry again.
“I hate this,” she whispered.
“I know,” he said.
“He made this thing that is happening between us ugly,” she said.
Jonnas’s expression sharpened immediately. “No.” His thumb brushed softly beneath her eye. “He tried to.” The certainty in his tone steadied something inside her.
Dani swallowed hard. “What happens now?” A slow smile spread across his face then—not smug, but victorious.
“We proved our timeline,” he said.
Her brows furrowed. “What?”
“The security logs.” He brushed a strand of hair behind her ear carefully.
“The board confirmed we weren’t together before the fundraiser.
” Relief hit so hard her knees almost weakened.
They had proof, actual proof. She wasn’t manipulated, and they didn’t have some scandalous affair.
Just one drunken night that spiraled into something life-changing afterward.
“Oh my God,” she whispered. Jonnas pulled her against his chest immediately when tears filled her eyes again.
“You gotta stop crying every time I tell you good news,” he joked.
“I’m pregnant and traumatized,” she mumbled against him. A laugh rumbled out of his chest. God, she loved that sound. Dani wrapped her arms tighter around his waist and breathed him in slowly. She was home now. The realization came easier now, not because of the place, but because of him.
Jonnas kissed the top of her head softly before murmuring, “The board’s recommending I disclose the relationship formally and remove myself from oversight connected to your department.”
She stiffened immediately. “You’re stepping down?”
“No.” He pulled back enough to look at her directly. “I’m restructuring reporting lines.” Relief flickered through her instantly. “Oh.”
One corner of his mouth lifted slightly. “You thought I quit already?”
“You said you would if they made you choose,” she reminded.
“I would have,” he agreed. “Fortunately, they didn’t make me choose.” The immediate certainty in his voice stole the air from her lungs. God, she could hear from the conviction in his voice that he still meant it. Even now, after everything that had happened.
Dani covered his hand with hers shakily. “Jonnas—”
“No.” His gaze locked onto hers. “I need you to understand something.” Her pulse jumped.
“You did not ruin my life.” His voice roughened slightly.
“You walked into it and made me remember there was more to living than work.” Emotion swelled so hard in her chest it physically hurt, because he meant every word, and suddenly Dani realized something terrifyingly beautiful.
She believed him now—really believed him.
“I like that you stopped running from me.” He was right. For the first time since all of this started, she wasn’t running anymore. Jonnas brushed one hand slowly down to her stomach beneath the oversized sweatshirt she wore, cupping her tummy with his big hand.
His eyes softened instantly. “You know what I was thinking about driving here?”
“What?” she asked.
“How pissed our kid’s gonna be when they find out their parents started all this with one drunk hookup,” he said. A startled laugh burst out of her, and Jonnas smiled like he’d just won something precious.
Standing there in her grandmother’s cabin with his hand resting over their baby and love shining openly in his eyes, Dani realized something else, too. This wasn’t the beginning of the end anymore. It was the beginning of their family.