Chapter Thirty-Three Hayden
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
HAYDEN
Ten months later…
T hree things were evident since Christian and Penny’s wedding. The first—I needed therapy if I had any hope of being a good long-term partner. Despite having phenomenal parents and a kick-ass support system of friends, there were parts of myself I had to work on. Navigating this new path with Simone’s parents in the picture was a lot to handle. Charlotte helped but that wasn’t her role. I had to deal with this on my own.
It sucked. Not gonna lie. I hated opening up and revealing vulnerable parts of myself. But I learned that wedding night that I wanted to commit to Charlotte, and it wouldn’t be fair to her if I didn’t work on myself too. She supported me the whole way and encouraged me on days when it seemed like too much.
The second thing was that I never had to make a permanent decision about Simone. She agreed to go to therapy before attempting to meet Gwen, but a few weeks in, she took off to Europe with friends to find herself again. I had refused to convince her to be in Gwen’s life. Gwen would want to learn about her birth mom someday, and Sarah and Phillip could help her.
Her parents had been a pleasant surprise though. Charlotte and I had monthly dinners with them, and things were going well. Gwen thought they were awesome, and that’s all that mattered.
The third thing was making Charlotte my wife. I wanted her to be my partner more than I could breathe. I wanted to see my ring—the one I held in my hand right now—on her finger and her in a wedding dress. I wanted Gwen and me to wait for her down the aisle as we asked her to be our family. She owned half my closet already, and Gwen was so used to seeing her in the morning that there would be no change once Charlotte actually moved in and accepted my proposal.
Had I asked her to move in a million times? Yes.
To marry me? Also, yes.
But those were when we were naked or laughing. Charlotte said she wanted the whole production, and she deserved it. She taught me how to love openly and how being vulnerable was a gift, not a burden.
She was perfect for me. That sentence was still true to this day. She brought me out of my shell and loved me so much that I didn’t know it was possible to be this happy.
On days I could get away in time, I’d often volunteer to run the scoreboard for her junior high team. I loved the sounds of the game and getting to watch her coach. She lit up on the field, her whole personality shining as girls surrounded her. Did this town expect her to take their eighth-grade softball team to the state finals? No.
Did Charlotte think she could do it? Absolutely.
At today’s game, it was the bottom of the seventh. Her team was up one run, and the opposing team had a runner on third. Our pitcher, Mack, was exhausted, but she was still throwing well. Charlotte signaled something from the dugout, and Mack nodded.
If they won this game, they were in the championship.
“You got it, Mack,” I shouted from the press box. It was a nice setup because it was shared with the high school. Their sound system was top-notch, something I was going to use to my advantage as soon as they won this game.
Because they needed a win, or I wouldn’t propose. Something about the right timing and all.
Mom: Has she won yet?
Christian: HAVE YOU DONE IT
Penny: Who cares if they lose, just propose I’m sick of keeping this secret.
Garrett: Don’t do it if they lose, that’s not a great idea
Christian: Hard agree, pen. They need the W
Dad: She’ll say yes! I know it!
Garrett: Look at this onesie I bought Graham?
Garrett sent a photo that read just escaped nine months locked up for baby Graham. Penny and Christian had made me an uncle to the cutest baby boy. Gwen was obsessed with him too. Kept asking for a new baby for herself, which made me think of Charlotte.
I knew she’d say yes. She showed me every day she chose me and wanted a life together. But our timing was everything, and there was no time like the present.
I tensed as Mack threw the third and final strike, abandoning the runner on third and securing the win. Coach Calhoun was going to the championship. The balloon of pride almost had me welling up. She had a vision and brought it to life her first year.
Oh. The best part? Chad had a terrible first year at the high school level and had the audacity to ask her to help and be his assistant coach. He asked her yesterday, right in the middle of middle school playoffs. She rightfully told him to piss off until this season was done.
I voted for turning it down. Charlotte was on the fence. He didn’t deserve her, but I’d let her make her own decision there. I was her cheerleader no matter what she did. I always would be.
Now it was my game time.
I tapped the mic, the loud thud echoing through the speakers. “Congrats on the win, Bulldogs!”
Everyone cheered, and Charlotte looked up at me with the goofiest smile on her face. That was my woman.
“Now, I have a very important question for Coach Calhoun. Can you go look at home plate for me?”
She tilted her head, holding a hand over her forehead to shield the sun. What? she mouthed.
“You heard me. Go home.”
She smirked, like she knew what I was doing. Good. Let her enjoy this. She deserved all the attention and love. The girls all waited with huge smiles as she jogged toward home plate. I had paid the umpire to do this, because there was no way I could sneak onto the field unnoticed, so he had placed the key ring there for me as soon as no one was paying attention.
“Please move in with me, with Gwen. I love you and want you in our home. That is a key to our house with a key chain from Gwen and me.”
Charlotte held it in her hands, her slight headshake telling me she was surprised. Gwen picked a pretty purple beaded one with softballs on the end, and I chose a snowball with the year. She was balling it up as a coach, and I wanted to be cheesy for her.
“I need an answer. Breathe if it’s yes.”
Everyone laughed. But I waited.
She looked up at the press box and rolled her eyes. “Fine.”
“You hear that, folks? I poured out my soul, and she said fine . Better than a no, I guess.” I paused for the crowd to react. “For this next activity, could you please go look on the center of the diamond, Coach Calhoun?”
She sighed, like she was annoyed with my antics, but I was ready. I was more than ready. The same umpire made it look like he was clearing the pitching mound, but he had set the ring on the center of it. A little risky, but worth it.
She stilled once she realized what it was.
“Will you marry me?” I asked into the mic.
She picked it up and stared at it before glancing up at the press box. She shouted something but I couldn’t quite make it out. Please be a yes, please be a yes.
“Was that a yes?”
The crowd hollered now. I opened the window. “Ask me to my face!” she yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth.
Oh. Of course.
I jogged down the stairs, through the door, and over to the third base dugout fence as everyone cheered. The cool October air hit my skin as I approached Charlotte. She looked fierce, confident, and beautiful. A sparkle danced in her eyes, like this amused her.
My gut settled. I had chosen this proposal because I knew she’d enjoy it. And just like that, seeing her smile at me as I neared her, my nerves disappeared. The last ten months had been the best of my life. Laughter came easy, and talking about feelings wasn’t painful.
I even maybe kinda sorta was proud of myself.
“Charlotte,” I said, fighting a smile. The field smelled like dirt and popcorn, and the wind whipped her hair around from her ponytail. I gently pushed some wild hair behind her ear, my heart racing. “I want you to be my wife. Will you please marry me?”
She glanced at the ground, arching a brow.
“Ah, of course.” I laughed now. My stubborn-as-hell woman wanted the whole on-the-knee thing. I crouched and took the ring she held in her hands. From this angle, the nerves returned, but they were the healthy kind. We’d talk about this moment forever, telling our friends and family and future kids. I’d do whatever she wanted, as long as she said yes.
“I like when you look up at me,” she whispered, her eyes glistening. “If you know what I mean.”
“I know what you mean.” I shook my head, snorting. I spent a lot of time on my knees around her. “Now, I’m going to ask this one more time, and you’re going to say yes and put me out of my misery. Charlotte Calhoun, will you please marry me?”
“Yes. I think I will.”
I took her left hand, slid the ring on her finger, and pulled her in for a kiss. The crowd cheered, and the girls all swarmed us, clapping and squealing. Charlotte giggled against my mouth, her hands trembling as she gripped the collar of my jacket.
“Does this match your dream proposal?”
“This is better.” She nuzzled me. “So much better. Marrying you is the dream come true, Hayden. I can’t wait to love you forever.”
Charlotte might’ve won the game, but I was the real winner here. She had taught me to believe those words. She would love me and push me and help me grow. Not that it was a competition, but I was coming out on top with the real prize. I got to be with this woman, and I’d never let her forget how much she meant to me. That was a promise.