Erica Yang

When the college health clinic discovers Bonnie Deluca was born with a hole in the wall of her heart, she finds herself suddenly facing surgery -- and the family she's been estranged from since leaving home. They don't accept her girlfriend, don't respect her needs, and aren't the people she wants making her medical decisions if anything goes wrong. A friendly nurse points out that a new option has become available in their state: thanks to marriage equality, Bonnie can make Tina her next of kin.<br><br>Tina Harper never thought she'd be getting married at nineteen. In spite of her fear, she wants to be there for Bonnie as best she can. Tina agrees to marry Bonnie so she can protect her.<br><br>As she faces off with Bonnie's family, Tina can only hope Bonnie will come out of surgery wholehearted and ready to live with the decision they've made.

Wholehearted

Tina crouched beside her, her face even with Bonnie’s, her expression all loving concern. “What’s up, babe?”


Her kindness made Bonnie cry even more. Tina loved her so much that she was totally focused on Bonnie’s needs right now. It had been obvious that Bonnie’s mother had hurt her, and Bonnie had been dealing all day with jagged guilt over not being out to her family, but Tina was too good a person to let that any of that get in the way of her love and affection. It was a breath of fresh air after the hidden web of conditions Bonnie felt trapped in whenever she was around her family. It was what Bonnie needed more than anything right now, and at the same time it felt so pure she wasn’t sure if she deserved to have it.


Chapter 3