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“If you’re sure.”
“I’ll make sure she’s okay,” Layla said.
Blake considered it for a moment, then nodded. He moved around Charli to the opening onto the ice and took the skating trainer from Amelia. Coming back to Charli, he set the trainer next to the boards.
“I can’t believe how strong she is,” Blake said. “She is so willing to take on these new experiences in a way I never would have thought she would.”
“It took her a little bit to find her footing here,” Charli agreed. “But since she has… wow.”
Watching Amelia blossom from a bud into a full bloom had been wonderful. Though she still wasn’t the most outgoing kid in the class, she was much more interactive with Charli and with her classmates than she’d been at first. It was a testament to Blake’s parenting that she was thriving despite a huge upheaval in her life.
“You’re doing great, berry,” Blake called out as the pair skated past them.
Even with the distraction, Amelia managed to look over at them without wiping out. And the smile on her face? It was amazing, and it matched the one on Layla’s face.
“I know you probably wish I hadn’t come back,” Blake said, turning his attention to Charli, his blue gaze serious. “And I’m sorry for how that made you feel, but when I see Amelia like this, I know I’d have to do it again.”
“I understand, Blake,” Charli assured him. “I’ve seen how Amelia has blossomed here. I would never ask you to put my comfort above what was best for Amelia.”
“You are part of what has been best for her. I’m so glad she ended up in your class. As soon as I realized you were her teacher, I knew she’d be in good hands.”
Her heart skipped a beat at the seriousness of his statement. “Really?”
“Of course.” He smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “Your passion for kids and the career you wanted was something I always loved about you. I hadn’t experienced a super affectionate and attentive mom growing up, so seeing how much you wanted to be a mom who loved and cherished her children was just one more thing I found attractive about you.”
His words filled her with warmth, reminding her of how it had felt to be with him twelve years ago. How supportive and understanding he’d been of her and her dreams. Until he wasn’t.
“You didn’t think I might have changed?”
Blake shook his head. “That passion was so deeply ingrained in you that I was certain it was something you’d always have.”
He seemed so certain that he knew her so well, even now. She didn’t have that same confidence because, after the way he’d ended things with her, Charli had wondered if she’d known Blake at all. Over the years, she’d accepted that, for whatever reason, at the end, Blake had chosen to act differently from the man she’d known.
It was hard to see that he had now become the type of man she’d thought he would be while they were dating. That person didn’t match the man her mind had developed him into over the past twelve years.
Her gaze lingered on the teenage pair as they neared again, moving past the two girls. This time, the guy was skating backwards as the pair held hands.
“I made it once by myself, Daddy!” Amelia called out.
“Good job,” Blake replied.
“I’m going to try another time around.”
Blake gave her a thumbs up, then watched as the girls headed off for another lap.
“Have you prayed about… this? Us trying again?” Charli asked, surprising Blake, if his lifted brows were anything to go by, as much as she surprised herself.
He stared at her for a moment, then said, “I didn’t at first.” His gaze went back to the ice. “I wasn’t sure that God would think I deserved a second chance.”
“But you’re praying about it now?” she asked, needing clarification of what he’d said.
“I am because I decided that I want to make sure that this is what God wants for us.” Blake paused again, staring at the ice, though Charli didn’t think he actually saw it. “I want us to have a relationship. I want us to have a future. So yes, I’m praying and asking for wisdom in how I approach this with you.” He glanced over at her. “Are you praying about it?”
“Like you, I didn’t pray right at the start,” Charli admitted. “But that was because I still didn’t know if I wanted us to succeed or not.”
Blake shifted to fully face her, a reserved expression on his face. “And you know now?”
Nerves fluttered wildly in her stomach. Could she commit to something with him again? In her heart and mind, she was committed already, but for some reason, it felt like such a risk to voice it.
