Jason POV
I don't know how long we laid there like that—her head on my chest, my fingers tracing lazy circles on her back—but I could've stayed there forever. Everything felt quiet, calm. Like the storm we'd barely survived had finally passed.
Then I felt it.
A soft thump against my stomach.
I froze. "Was that…?"
Ella pulled back slightly, a sleepy smile blooming across her face. "Mhm."
"The baby?" I whispered, because suddenly even speaking felt sacred.
She nodded and took my hand, guiding it to rest fully over the curve of her belly. And just as I was about to tell myself maybe I imagined it—
There it was again. A kick. Stronger this time. Sure. Real.
My throat tightened. "Holy shit."
Ella laughed softly, her voice hoarse from sleep and… last night. "Don't curse in front of the baby."
"Right. Sorry. Holy—uh—shoot." But the grin stretching across my face was unstoppable. "He kicked. He actually kicked."
I looked up at her and, for a second, forgot how to breathe.
