Silence—vast and faintly humming—stretched across the line until all Charlotte could hear was the blood pounding in her ears.

Her heart climbed into her throat, each beat crashing like thunder.

She perched on the edge of the bed, moonlight striping her knees. Oh no… What if Sven doesn’t want this baby? What am I supposed to do then?

After what felt like an eternity, Sven’s voice finally rumbled through the speaker. “Why so sudden?” he asked. The low timbre carried surprise and awe—but not rejection.

Charlotte’s pulse stumbled. The question, light yet ambiguous, dropped into her chest like a stone through thin ice.

But Sven kept going, his tone firming as if he’d found solid ground beneath his feet. “I’m nowhere near prepared. We’re not even married yet… Looks like the wedding schedule needs to move up—fast.”

Her emotions lurched wildly, plunging one second and soaring the next.