Chapter 3

I finally found a job.

Clerk at a tiny flower shop.

The pay wasn't much, but it was enough to live on.

Spending every day around flowers and plants, my heart slowly settled.

I changed my number and cut off everyone from before.

Victor, Georgia. Those names felt like something from another life.

The shop owner was a kind woman named Joan Dickerson.

Seeing me on my own, she often went out of her way to look after me.

That day, a customer came into the shop.

He was carrying a huge bunch of sunflowers.

"Bella?"

I looked up. It was Bill.

He had a white coat on under a trench coat, like he'd just come from the hospital.

"Dr. Harding?"

I was caught off guard.

He smiled. "I was passing by, saw how pretty this shop was, and thought I'd stop in."

He held out the sunflowers.

"These are for you. I hope you'll turn toward the sun every day, just like they do."

I didn't know what to do.

"This… is too much."

"It's just flowers."

He pressed them into my arms.

"You're almost off, right? Want to grab dinner?"

Before I could turn him down, Joan poked her head out from the back.

"Bella, is this a friend of yours? Go on, go. I've got the shop."

So I ended up carrying the flowers and following Bill out.

We went to a small diner that served home-style cooking.

He ordered the dishes I liked without missing a beat.

I was a little surprised.

He explained, "My sister likes this kind of food too."

Over the meal, we talked about a lot of things.

His work. My flower shop.

He was a good listener, always smiling while I rambled on about the small, trivial things.

After we ate, he drove me home.

When we reached my building, he suddenly spoke.

"Bella, I know the timing for this might be wrong."

"But the first time I saw you at the hospital, I…"

He paused, seeming to search for the words.

"Can I court you?"

I froze completely.

The streetlight fell across his face, his eyes sincere and warm.

My thoughts were a tangled mess.

I'd only just crawled out of a failed marriage, still covered in wounds.

I didn't dare, and I had no right, to take on another relationship.

"Dr. Harding, I'm sorry."

I lowered my head.

"Right now I… don't want to think about any of this."

It was as though he'd expected my answer all along. There wasn't a trace of disappointment in him.

"It's all right."

He smiled gently.

"I can wait."

"For as long as it takes, until you're ready."

He didn't push me any further, just turned and left.

I watched him go, and something bittersweet stirred in me.

That night, I had a dream.

In it, I was back on that cold operating table.

Victor stood right beside me, checking his watch, impatience all over his face.

"Hurry up, I've still got an important meeting."

I begged him through my tears, "Save our baby."

He turned away, cold. "It's just one baby. There'll be others."

I jolted awake, drenched in a cold sweat.

Outside the window, the sky had already gone light.

I touched my flat stomach, where a tiny life had once grown.

Victor, I will never, ever forgive you.