Chapter 54
Jack
Eleven Months
"Do you want to get married?"
Abby drops the sippy cup she's washing into the sink with a loud clatter, spinning around abruptly and staring at me wide-eyed.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Do you want to get married?" I repeat through a mouthful of turkey sub leftover from lunch earlier.
"Are you proposing to me through a mouthful of food in our kitchen?"
Our. It's music to my ears every time she says it.
"Sorry," I say, swallowing hastily. "No, this is not a proposal—I meant, do you want to get married, ever? Or is that not something you want to do again?"
She leans against the counter, drumming her fingers on the butcher block countertops.
"I think if you'd asked me a few months ago, I would have said no," she says thoughtfully. "But I also think if you'd asked me if I ever thought I'd fall in love again, I would have said no to that, too."
"And what about now?"
She purses her lips and cocks her head contemplatively. After a few moments of quiet pondering, I decide to break the silence.
"It doesn't make a difference to me, I hope you know that," I say reassuringly.
"All I care about is getting to love you and Erin.
I don't need a piece of paper to do that.
I just want to make sure you get everything you want, pretty girl.
I want to give you the world—whether I do that as your husband or your partner or just your Jack is irrelevant. "
"You perfect, sweet man," she says softly, crossing the room and sitting in my lap in the dining chair. She wraps her arms around my neck and kisses me gently on the mouth. "I think I'd like very much for you to do that as my husband someday. If that's something you want."
"I want it all," I say, pulling her in for a deeper kiss. "As long as it's with you."
She runs her fingers through my hair, smiling at me affectionately.
"You've got it, Jack Robbit," she says. "All of it."
"And don't tell me to stop calling you that," she adds when I open my mouth to retaliate, as per usual. "If you want to give me the world, the least you can give me is a silly nickname."
"Okay, pretty girl," I say, finally waving the white flag and accepting a defeat fifteen years in the making. "And there's no rush. Like I said, this isn't a proposal. This was just a conversation."
"Would it freak you out if I said I'd rather do it sooner than later?" she asks, still stroking my hair absentmindedly. "I know this has happened kind of quickly, and I know it's a lot."
"Doesn't freak me out one bit," I say confidently. "Nothing about this freaks me out—not you, not Erin, not marriage. I'm all in, Abby."
"I think that's part of why I would want to get married again," she says. "I want to make sure everyone else sees Erin as yours as much as I do. I want her to know you've picked her as much as you've picked me."
My heart lodges in my throat, making it damn near impossible to respond.
"You know no matter what happens, I'm always going to take care of her," I say hoarsely.
"That's part of why I love you so much," she sighs.
"Because I don't doubt that one bit. When the time comes, would you…
" she starts, nervously biting the inside of her cheek.
"Would you want to adopt her, legally? I don't think step-parents get automatic legal rights in Texas, and if the past years have taught me anything it's that you have no idea what's going to happen, and I want to make sure—"
"Abby," I interrupt, squeezing her thigh. "Nothing in the world would make me happier. I'm honored you would want that. Do you think she'd be okay with it, when she gets older? I have no plans to override Aaron's place in her life, he'll always be her dad. I'm more than happy to be step-dad."
"She's going to know she has two dads," she emphasizes. "You aren't a step-dad, Jack. You're so much more than that to me, and to her. She's going to know that."
"Okay," I say, putting a hand on the back of her neck and guiding her down so I can kiss her forehead.
"Then of course I'll adopt her. And I'll marry you so hard.
You show me where the dotted line is and I'll sign it.
I'll sign my whole life over—it hasn't been mine since the first time I saw my two pretty girls together. "
She smiles happily through the tears in her eyes, hugging me close and laying her head on top of mine.
"I can't believe this is how you thought I'd propose," I scoff. "When I ask you to marry me for real, Abby Thompson, you'll fucking know it."
She laughs, squeezing me tight before standing up to finishes the dishes in the still-running sink.
"And you better stay on your toes," I warn. "Now that I know you're going to say yes, I'm not dragging my feet about this."
"How quickly are we talking here, Jacky boy?" she asks suspiciously.
"Who knows," I hum with a mischievous smile. "Could be tomorrow, could be next week, could be next month. Guess you'll find out soon enough."
"Sweet Jesus," she mutters playfully. "Maybe I should have made you sweat a little longer."
"No take-backs, Abigail," I say, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You're stuck with me now."
Loud babbling from down the hall indicates that our precious girl is up from her nap and ready to join the party.
"You better go get that tiny pretty girl of yours," Abby laughs, shaking her head. "If I'm stuck with you, so is she."
I start to leave the room when Abby calls out for me to stop.
"And we're the luckiest girls in the world for it," she adds with a kiss before poking my nose with a soapy fingertip.
"I love you," I say with a grin, wiping the suds off my nose and heading for the nursery.
"I love you back," she yells after me, and all I can think about is how grateful I am to be stuck exactly where I want to be.