After work, Gwen Grayson swung by her old place. She packed up two large suitcases of clothes and gathered the rest of her daily essentials.
Lugging a heavy backpack and rolling a suitcase in each hand, she arrived at her front door. Just as she reached out to knock, it swung open from the inside.
Jason Jenkins stood in the doorway.
"What are you doing here?"
"What's all this?"
They blurted out their questions in unison.
Before either could answer, Mia darted out and stopped right in front of them. She tilted her little head up and beamed. "Gwen! I haven't seen you in days. I missed you!"
Jason smoothly took the heavy suitcases from Gwen's grip and slipped the cumbersome backpack off her shoulders.
Gwen crouched down to meet Mia's eyes. "My dad is sick right now, sweetie. I have to stay home and take care of him, so I won't have much free time to play for a little while."
"Then Dad and I can come play with you here! I just sang a song for Mr. Grayson, and he said he really loved it."
Mia shared her excitement with pure joy. Her voice was as sweet as a little songbird, and her eyes crinkled into happy little crescents.
"Thank you, Mia," Gwen said, gently ruffling the little girl's hair.
"Dad said he's going to bring Mr. Grayson downstairs tomorrow," Mia continued. "I can practice my rollerblading while he practices walking. We can all hang out together!"
The mere mention of playtime sent Mia into a fit of adorable giggles.
Gwen looked at the girl with a twinge of envy. It was amazing how effortlessly happy children could be.
"Where do you want these bags?" Jason asked.
"I can unpack them myself," Gwen said, attempting a polite dismissal. "It's getting late. You should probably get Mia home."
She was subtly trying to kick him out again.
Jason completely ignored the hint, rolling her luggage straight into the bedroom.
Gwen had no choice but to trail after him. Stopping just inside the doorway, she crossed her arms. "Didn't we agree you were going to give me time to think?"
"I took Mia to the park to rollerblade. She said she missed you, so we came up to say hi," Jason replied evenly. "Giving you time to think doesn't mean we can't see each other at all. I'm not forcing an answer out of you today."
Setting the suitcases aside, Jason closed the distance between them and wrapped his hands possessively around her waist.
The last time he had been here, right before leaving, he had dropped a bombshell: "Gwen, let's just get married. You and your dad can move into my place, and we can take care of each other."
A marriage proposal out of absolutely nowhere.
Gwen's brain had completely short-circuited in that moment.

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