Chapter 22 #2
“I’m sure she appreciated the call.” Mia and her mother had never recovered from the deception her mother had perpetrated for most of Mia’s life, keeping her from her devoted father, Cabot.
“She did. In other news, I have a present for you that I’m hoping you’ll like.”
“I’ll like any present you get for me. You know that.”
“This one is a little different. It’s a big commitment.”
“I’ll admit I’m curious.”
“I’m pregnant.”
“You… you’re… Wow,” he said on an exhale. “I didn’t see that coming.”
“Me either,” she said with a laugh. “I thought we were done, and then I missed a period and took a test and… well… Merry Christmas, Daddy.”
Wade smiled as he kissed her. “Best Christmas present ever.”
“Is it? I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about it. We already have our hands full with two kids and busy jobs.”
“I’m thrilled.” He put his hand on her face and caressed her soft skin with his thumb. “You make the cutest babies. How could I not be excited about another one?”
“We didn’t plan this one.”
“We also didn’t do much to stop it.”
“That’s true.”
“I used to lie awake in this room and dream about how my life might unfold, but nothing I could’ve imagined for myself could match the life I have with you. It’s right out of the best fairy tale I’ve ever read, and now we have another little person to look forward to welcoming next year.”
“I’m glad you’re happy about it.” Mia rested her head on his chest. “I used to picture the man I might marry, and he looked nothing like you.”
Surprised, he asked, “What did he look like?”
“He was big and burly with a beard and tattoos.”
“So basically you dreamed about Brody?” He referred to the man she’d helped put in prison after he was abusive to her, among other offenses.
Mia’s soft laughter rocked them both. “What can I say? I had a type until I met this amazing guy at a yoga retreat, and my type instantly transformed.”
“Nice save,” he said dryly.
“You know I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone in my whole life except for our kids.”
“I do know that, and it’s the best thing to ever happen to me. You’re the best thing.”
“Same goes.”
“Merry Christmas, sweet Mia.”
“Merry Christmas, Wade.”
“How much sex is being had in this barn tonight?” Charley asked Tyler as he moved in her, driving her wild the way he always did.
“Probably a lot,” he said without missing a beat. He was good that way. The ultimate multitasker. “But I’m worried I’m not doing a very good job if you’re having random thoughts in the middle of sex with me.”
“You’re doing a very good job. As always. I’ll be sure to leave you another five-star review afterward.”
“Gee, thanks,” he said, smiling as he kissed her. “I live and die by those reviews.”
“Don’t you dare die. There isn’t another man alive who could put up with me. Just ask my brothers. They’ll tell you.”
“There isn’t another man alive who’d ever love you like I do.”
“That makes me a very lucky girl.”
“I’m the lucky one.” He propped himself up on his muscular arms as he made love to her.
“Once again, you stepped up for me and the girls during the holidays, doing recital hair and makeup, preparing for The Nutcracker, baking cookies, shopping, wrapping, decorating the house and never missing a beat at work.”
“I love doing all of it.”
“Have I properly thanked you for taking in my nieces and loving them like they’re your own?”
Charley held out her arms to him and held him close as they chased the big finish. “Every day.”
Tyler kissed her to keep her quiet and then collapsed on top of her. “It’ll never be enough.”
“I love every minute with you and the girls. You know that.”
“I do, but still… You never wanted kids, and then you brought two heartbroken kids into our home without a single hesitation.”
“I have a thought about that.”
“Are you going to share it with me?”
Charley ran her hands over his back, soothing him as they came down from the incredible high they always found together.
“I think, it’s possible, that I never wanted kids of my own because, somehow, I knew I was going to be called upon to finish raising someone else’s children.
Maybe I suspected the universe had other plans for me. ”
“You really think so?”
She shrugged. “It’s the only explanation I can think of for why I always knew I wouldn’t have kids of my own.”
“Whatever the reason, you’ve become such a wonderful second mom to them, and they love you so much. Almost as much as I do.”
“Who’d have ever thought that falling off a mountain would turn out to be the best thing to ever happen to me?”
“I knew. Not the falling-off-the-mountain part, but I knew if you’d only give me a chance, we could have something amazing.”
“You were right. You’re always right.”
“Could I please have you say that again so I can record it?”
“Absolutely not. Hey, Ty?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“If you, you know, wanted to get married at some point, I’d be down with that.”
His entire body went still in the second before he raised his head to make eye contact. “Really?”
Charley was immediately shy and uncertain, two emotions she rarely experienced, especially with him. She nodded since the lump in her throat made it hard to speak.
“When and where? You say the word, and I’m there.”
“Maybe in the spring?”
“Are you proposing to me?”
“Do you want me to?”
“Hell yes. And make it good. I’ve waited a very long time for this.”
Charley giggled. “Tyler Westcott, love of my life, will you finally make an honest woman out of me and marry me in the spring?”
“Hmm, let me think about it.”
“Tyler!”
He lost it laughing. “Yes, Charlotte Abbott, love of this life and all the ones to come, I’ll marry you in the spring. With bells on.”
She hugged him tightly.
“Did you get me a ring?” he asked.
She poked his side.
“I’m a traditional kind of guy, which means I’ll be getting you a ring to seal this deal.”
“You don’t have to.”
“Oh yes, I do, because I’m only getting married once, and we’re going to do it right. What changed, sweetheart?”
“I’m not really sure, but at some point in the last few months, I started thinking more about how maybe we should get married.”
“I’d marry you tomorrow if we could.”
Charley caressed his handsome face. “Thank you for being patient with me and never pushing me to be anyone other than who and what I am.”
He kissed her softly. “I love who and what you are, and I always will.”
Gavin returned to the bedroom he was sharing with Ella and their kids, carrying a mug of the peppermint tea that was the only thing that helped with nausea when Ella was pregnant.
She had put the light on in the closet so he could find his way to the bed without spilling the hot tea on their sleeping little ones.
He handed it over to her.
“Thank you.”
“I hope it helps.”
“Me, too.”
They’d been planning to take a test after the holidays to confirm what they already knew after three previous pregnancies. The nausea had kicked in two days ago, which was the final piece to the puzzle.
“Four kids,” Gavin said for the hundredth time in the last few days. “We’re going to have four kids.”
“I told you I wanted a big family before we got married.”
“I know, and don’t get me wrong. I’m thrilled. But wow. Four.”
“Good thing you have a few more months to prepare yourself.”
“How are you so calm and cool about this?”
“Because I’m so happy. All I’ve ever wanted is what I have right now—you, our kids, another on the way, my family, the store, this town. It’s my dream come true, and it just keeps getting better all the time.”
“I love how you can say that when you feel awful.”
“Eh, it’ll pass. It always does, and the result is worth a few months of feeling lousy.”
“You’re my hero,” he said, kissing her hand. “I hope you know that.”
“And you’re mine. I couldn’t do any of this without you.”
Gavin tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. “You’re the superhero. When I think of where I was before you decided we were meant to be… You saved my life, Ella.”
She kissed him. “And you saved mine, because I never would’ve been happy with anyone but you.”