47. Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Riley
W e were late. When we pulled up to my parents’ house there were six faces watching us from the front window. Matt gave me a nervous smile. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” he asked me.
“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” I told him. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” I pointed at the faces filling the window. “If you walk in there, that’s it, you’re stuck with me forever.”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything. I wish you would stop acting like you aren’t already stuck with me.” He lifted my left hand to his lips and kissed my ring finger. The finger that I hoped would have a ring on it soon. He had dropped so many hints this morning I couldn’t stop myself from hoping.
Please let that be the something he was up to.
After another silent exchange and nods from both of us Matt got out of the car, insisting that I stay put and let him open my door. “I can’t have your family thinking I don’t have any manners,” he said.
“You’ve met my sister. Do you really think that doesn’t come from somewhere? You probably have more manners than all of us combined.”
The front door flew open, and Aaron came running out. “They’re sending the kid for reconnaissance,” I said to Matt.
“I guess it’s a good thing I have plenty of experience being the best uncle in the history of forever.” He winked at me and then turned toward Aaron. Matt dropped into a squat and held his arms out to welcome my nephew in for a hug. I couldn’t wait to get to his parents’ house so I could see him with his nieces and nephews.
Matt and Aaron talked in hushed whispers as I opened the trunk to pull out the basket of Christmas gifts. Matt started to stand, “Sweetheart, let me get those.” Aaron pulled on his hand and redirected his attention.
Milo appeared by my side and took the basket. “Looks like he has Aaron’s approval,” he said. We watched Aaron pull Matt by the hand toward the house to my waiting family. The kid was pointing at each person and telling Matt who they were. “Jenna told me about him the other night.”
I looked down at my feet and scuffed the toe of my boot against the ground. “I didn’t know I could feel like this about someone, Milo. How do you handle feeling like this all the time?”
Milo looked at his stepson and wife. His eyes clouded with tears. “You never forget how lucky you are to have it.” He poked me in the side with his elbow. “I’m glad you’re happy, Ri. I’m also mad that you’ve kept it a secret from all of us.”
“I can’t believe Emery didn’t tell y’all.” I followed my brother into the house.
The sight of Matt exchanging hugs with my parents while Aaron clutched his hand brought tears to my eyes. He turned to look over his shoulder with a smile at me that dropped as his eyes locked on mine. He looked down at Aaron. “Hey, bud, I think your aunt Riley needs a hug.” Then Aaron and Matt were both wrapping their arms around me. “Happy tears?” Matt whispered in my ear.
I nodded and dabbed at my eyes with the backs of my hands. Matt studied my face and then planted kisses over my face.
“Eww, Matt, really? There’s a kid here.” Emery yelled.
I laughed against Matt.
“Oh my god, Emery, just let them be happy,” Milo shot back.
Over breakfast Matt and I filled everyone in on how we had met over the summer and then had been surprised to see each other at the district meeting. We left out most of the parts about all my hesitation, except for when we wanted to give Emery a hard time about all the meddling she insisted on doing.
Over the past few days I kept imagining how it would feel to have him here with us. It was truly better than anything I had imagined. I hadn’t realized how relieved I would feel to have their approval of him. Just like always, Matt never stopped touching me. A hand hold there, a thigh squeeze there, the occasional knock of his knee against mine. It felt like we had been doing this for years.
He insisted on helping my dad and Milo clean up the kitchen when we finished eating. My mother insisted that he was a guest and didn’t need to help, but he shrugged and said he was used to helping clean up after Emery.
“I’ll remember that next time I have a kitchen full of baked goods you want to raid,” Emery said with an eyeroll.
***
Aaron wanted to hand out everyone’s gifts and asked Matt to help him. I had been Aaron’s favorite since he joined the family, and it was clear that Matt would replace me after today. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Matt squatted down in front of me and placed a small box with a card on top in my lap. This must have been why he kept insisting on handling all the gifts when we loaded up the car to leave this morning and when we got here. He must have slipped into the mix while I wasn’t watching.
Around us everyone opened their gifts after Aaron announced that was all of them. We were never a family that made everyone go around taking their turn to open their gifts. Milo had a small basket of bags sitting at his feet that he wasn’t passing out. I smiled as I watched everyone.
Matt reached up and stroked my cheek drawing my attention back to him. “Open the card first,” he said in a low voice just for me. He ignored the pile at his side and focused only on me. The fingers of his left hand tapped patterns on my knee.
I tried to open the envelope with careful hands, but it ripped in a jagged line. I pulled out the card with shaking hands unfolding the paper inside. It was creased like it had been folded and unfolded a few times, the ink smudged with fingerprints close to the edges in a few places.
Hi Sweetheart,
I had a big speech that I wanted to give you, but I also really wanted those words to be just for us. I’m resorting to this card instead so I can still do this in front of your family like I wanted.
You’re asleep in our bed beside me right now and I’m trying to write this without waking you up. You are so beautiful and fit so perfectly here. I could have you in bed next to me every night for the rest of my life and I would still feel so lucky to have you here. Thank you for letting me call you mine.
I think I’ve been in love with you since that first date in June. It feels like so long ago already even if it has only been a few months. I fall in love with you a little more than I thought possible every day. I can’t believe I get to love you.
Letting you take your time has been torture, but it was all worth it. Even if things had turned out differently, it would have been worth it just for the time I’ve been lucky enough to have you in my life.
I have so many dreams for our future together, but I’m trying to stop and take in all these little moments on the journey there. Learning about you has been the best thing I’ve ever had the privilege of doing. Falling in love with you has been my best decision. Getting to be loved by you has been the greatest gift I’ve ever been given.
I’ve been holding onto this ring since the night of our first kiss. I had thought for a while that you might be it for me, but that first kiss was the moment I knew without a doubt I had found my wife. Riley, sweetheart, look up at me. I have something I need to ask you.
The words ended there, and I noticed wet spots where tears had already slid from my face onto the paper. I looked up to see Matt kneeling on one knee. The box was gone from my lap and opened in his hands. Everything was blurred by my tears, but I could see the love in his eyes clearly.
“Yes!” I yelled before he could say anything.
He laughed and his special smile for me lit up his whole face. “You have to let me ask first.”
I fanned my face with the letter and the tears came harder. The noise of everyone else had quietened. It was just me and Matt. I bit my lip to try and hold back.
“Riley Harrison, will you –”
“Yes!” It slipped out and then I was on the floor next to him wrapping my arms around him. He pulled back to slide the ring onto my finger and kissed the tears from my face.
“Either all of you are crying or I’m crying so hard this time it looks like everyone else is,” my dad said.
I laughed into Matt’s mouth as he kissed me. I parted from him to look around the room. Milo pulled out a tissue box and was passing out tissues to everyone.
“We’re all a bunch of big babies,” Emery said as she dabbed at her eyes. She pointed at me, “I told you. I better get to be the maid of honor. I already have my speech written.”
I wrapped my sister into a bear hug and swayed her from side to side. “Of course! This is kind of all your fault.”
Milo cleared his throat, and we all turned our attention to him. “Might as well do this while the tissues are already out.” He held up the basket of mini gift bags. “I don’t want to ruin your announcement, but Jenna kind of had something we need to tell everyone.”
There was more squealing and crying as we all pulled the little ultrasound photos from the bags.
“Best Christmas ever!” Dad yelled. He held out his arms and then we were all gathering into a big group hug. We all broke apart and passed around the tissue box. “What about you Emery, any news?” he asked.
She fell back on the couch and shook her head. “I think I’m going to get a cat. Or maybe a dog. Maybe both.”