Chapter 25 Ash
ASH
Ash paced the polished wood floors of Slice of Heaven two days before Christmas, wondering if he had lost his mind.
The delicious scent of pizza cooking in a wood-fired oven made the minimalist space feel cozy. He and Allie had just shared an incredible meal, dreaming about what the future held and simply enjoying each other’s company.
They had been going out for a quiet dinner every night, while Maya was in heaven hanging out at the Lawrence place with Allie’s parents and chasing Tripp all over the farm.
Ash had spent a lot of time longing for Allie to agree to date him for real, and at the same time trying desperately not to let himself fall too hard for her.
But now that he’d won her over, and let go of his silly desire to protect his heart, it was incredible how quickly everything had fallen into place.
He felt as if he’d finally found the missing puzzle piece that snapped their lives perfectly together.
Ash continued to pace as he waited for Allie to finish chatting with a kindergarten parent who had caught her on her way back from the powder room. He felt more and more amped up the longer he waited for her.
Calm down, Tailor, he tried to tell himself. She might not be ready for all this.
But he couldn’t quiet his thundering heart, or suppress the joyful anticipation that filled his chest.
“Hey,” Allie said, jogging over to him. “Sorry about that. We just needed to chat about their son for a second. He’s such a love.”
“Never be sorry,” Ash told her with a gentle smile. “I’m so glad you care about your students and their families.”
Her answering smile was so beautiful, it almost hurt to look at her.
“Walk with me in the park for a minute?” he asked, offering her his arm.
“You’re such a hopeless romantic,” she teased him.
He chuckled, but she was actually right. Something about spending time in this sweet little town with this lovely young woman had peeled away his jaded layers, leaving him feeling optimistic, and yes, romantic.
He opened the door and sucked in a breath of deliciously crisp air.
“You like the cold, huh?” Allie asked, observing him.
“The air here is sweet,” he said, shaking his head in wonder. “I can’t get over it.”
“Everything here is sweet,” Allie said, her eyes on the pavilion across the street.
“It sure is,” Ash told her, wondering if she knew that he included her in his assessment.
They crossed over to the park and he led her quickly up the steps of the pavilion, hoping he’d be able to keep his surprise hidden.
“We’ve spent a lot of time up here,” Allie said softly.
All he wanted was to pull her close, inhale her peachy scent, and kiss her until she forgot her own name.
But there was something very important he had to do first.
There was a time not so long ago, when Ash had thought he might never want to bind himself to a woman again.
But as he sank to one knee in front of Allie. It was the most freeing feeling in the world.
“Ash,” she breathed, her eyes widening.
“You’re everything to me, Allie,” he told her. “You’re everything to us. Please say you’ll be my wife, for real this time, and I’ll spend a lifetime making this family the legacy I dreamed of.”
Allie opened her mouth but the only thing that came out was a sob.
“Say yes,” Maya’s little voice squeaked from over on the steps.
Allie turned and Maya ran to her, wrapping her arms around Allie’s waist and hugging her hard.
“What are you doing here?” Allie asked Maya with a smile, hugging her back.
“It’s a surprise,” Maya whispered.
“Oh,” Allie said, looking down into the park, where her family waited, sheepish smiles on all those familiar faces looking up at her.
“Surprise,” Tripp yelled, shrugging his shoulders.
The rest of the family echoed him, some of them laughing nervously.
“Ash,” she breathed, turning back to him. “This is…”
“If you’re not ready, please don’t let this pressure you,” Ash said, instantly feeling awful. “Your brother thought you would like to involve the family, and—”
But she was falling to her knees to kiss him before he could even finish.
Maya giggled and joined their embrace and Ash wrapped his arms around them both, his heart aching with happiness as he held his little family close.
“You get your pretty ring back, Miss Lawrence,” Maya whispered.
“Not yet,” Ash said. “She’s still thinking, and that’s okay.”
“No,” Allie said quickly. “I’m not still thinking. I’m saying yes.”
“Yes,” Maya chirped.
“Are you sure?” Ash asked gently.
“Yes,” Allie said, smiling with such joy that he knew it was true. “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”
“We’ll get you a different one later,” he said, sliding the ring back onto her finger. “Something with a bigger stone, and you can pick it out.”
“No,” Allie said, holding her left hand to her chest as if to protect it from him. “I love this one. It’s part of our story now.”
“And this is the happily ever after part,” Maya said firmly. “Right, Miss Lawrence.”
“Right,” Allie said, laughing and pulling Maya in for another hug.
Allie’s family began to applaud and call out their congratulations and the next thing Ash knew, they were being joined on the pavilion.
Daniel lifted Maya up and spun her around, while Maggie pulled Allie into a big hug.
“You know you still have to share her with us, right?” Tripp asked Ash, thrusting out his hand.
“Definitely,” Ash laughed, taking it and shaking before the other man pulled him in to slap him on the back. “Allie’s family is a package deal, just like Maya and me. We were meant for each other.”
“Right you are,” Tripp said, nodding as his eyes found Allie and Maya.
If Ash hadn’t known better he would have thought the big farmer had tears in his eyes.
“Who wants to come back to the farm for cake and ice cream?” Maggie asked in a clear, bright voice.
All the Lawrences voiced their delight, and no one joined in louder than a very happy and excited Maya.
“We’ll meet you there,” Allie told her mom. “Maya and I are going to race around the park one time before we head over.”
“Good luck, kid,” her dad said, bending to pat Maya’s back. “You can take her.”
This tickled Maya, and she threw her head back and laughed in delight.
“Do you want in on this race?” Allie asked, turning to Ash.
And though he’d planned to watch them, he realized that he did sort of want to make a fool of himself running around the park.
“Yes,” he said, “I think I do.”
“Last one to the Christmas tree and back is a sour creemee,” Allie yelled before taking off like a shot.
“Hey,” Maya said, gamely sprinting after her.
Ash brought up the rear, watching the young woman with the golden hair and his sweet daughter with her dark ponytails flying, both of them laughing as they ran.
He was impressed at how stealthily Allie waited until she was behind the big Christmas tree before slowing down enough for Maya to catch up.
As he drank in the cold, fresh air, and they all flew back down the sidewalk toward the pretty pavilion where so many things had been happening lately, Ash realized that he wasn’t chasing the ability to be happy with what he had anymore.
He was already there.