Page 112 of Resisting Isaac

“I know,” Ivy says. “And we almost didn’t tell you. But after the fall, and the way production’s been breathing down everyone’s neck, we wanted you to know you have options. Sort of.”

I nod slowly. “We appreciate you trying to help.”

They leave quietly. The somber mood lingers after they’re gone.

Elena doesn’t speak for a long time.

I sit beside her with the yogurt and fruit, careful not to jostle her as I prop her feet in my lap.

She finally says, “How did this get so messed up?” Before I can answer, she sighs heavily. “Only I could manage to screw up not just the role of a lifetime but the financial saving grace for your entire ranch and family.” Her eyes land on mine and she groans before resting her head over on the back of the couch. “The night we met, I should’ve just introduced myself and told you I was going to ruin your life.”

I stop her shame spiral there. “First of all, it takes two to do what we did and even if you had introduced yourself that way, I doubt it would’ve stopped me.” Smirking, I hand her the bowl and hope she’ll at least eat a little something. “Second,” I continue, “My life is far from ruined. I have a beautiful woman in my home, a beautiful woman who’s carrying my healthy, probably excessively good-looking child, and we have options like Ivy and Wyatt said.”

“Excessively good looking?” She takes a bite of yogurt. A small one.

“Have you seen us?”

She shakes her head and stirs the fruit around in the yogurt. “It’s just…a lot. The baby. The show. My family. Now this.”

“I know.” I want to tell her not to worry. That we’ll figure it out.

But the words feel too small for the weight in her eyes.

So I wait for her to finish eating and set the bowl aside, then I take her hand in mine and pull her into my arms.

“We don’t have to decide anything tonight,” I tell her. “But for the record, there’s nothing I won’t do to make sure you and our child have everything you need.”

She doesn’t answer.

Because she’s dosing off in my arms.

I’ve practicedwhat I plan to say about a hundred times in my head while Elena caught up on her rest.

I’ve given the speech to Jasper, Rowdy, Blue, and even Sophia.

I’ve rehearsed it in the truck. In the shower. While brushing my teeth and again while feeding the dogs. But now that she’s standing in front of me, arms crossed, hair in a messy bun, and my oversized hoodie drowning her—I go blank.

“Okay,” I start, lifting both hands like I’m about to negotiate a hostage situation. “Hear me out.”

She lifts a brow. “That’s never followed by anything sane.”

“Fair enough,” I admit, then rub the back of my neck, deciding the best way is just to get to the point. The worse she can say is no, then we go back to square one. “So, my dad had this buddy. Wayne. Wore bolo ties and never shut up about black angus genetics.”

She stares blankly. Then her dark brows dip inward. “Okay.”

“He was married for ten years before he and his wife realized their marriage wasn’t legally valid.”

Her head tilts. “What?”

“Yeah.” I nod. “Turns out, they forgot to go back and get the marriage license notarized after the ceremony. Just never did it.”

“Eloping 101: don't forget the paperwork,” she mutters.

“Exactly. Here’s the thing—in the state of Montana, they had a validtemporarymarriage license on file for one hundred and eighty days. But they never completed an official exchange of vows or had two witnesses, and a certified justice of the peace and notary notarize it. Failing to do that legally made the marriage invalid after the temporary certificate expired. But they didn’t dig that deep until there was a reason. Like a life insurance policy or something.”

Her eyes narrow. “Isaac. What are you getting at?”

Fuck, I love how my name sounds in her mouth, even when her tone makes it clear she thinks I’m an idiot. I take a deep breath. “The temporary license is good for six months. We get one. We have a ceremony, and your dad gets to walk you down the aisle. And maybe they give you less of a hard time and hate me a little less. The production company loses their grounds for firing you and pulling the location contract. Filming will be over or close to over by the time our certificate expires.”