Chapter 20 Alex
ALEX
Alex had meant what he’d said. He’d already told a shocked Hilary of her promotion and put in place the necessary means by which to fulfill it.
He’d maintain a supervisory role, but the time had come to step back from the day-to-day running of the business.
If he and Kaitlyn were to make a go of things, he had to concentrate on what really mattered — her.
That’s why he’d come to Cedarhurst, and why he was now sitting on the couch with Kaitlyn at her mom’s house, right back where it had all started.
But her words had come as a shock, a complete and utter shock, and it took a moment for him to realize what she was saying.
“Pregnant? Are you sure?” he asked.
It was a foolish thing to say, and he knew it because the look on her face told him it was true. But to hear her say so…
“I did two tests, and I can’t stop throwing up in the mornings.”
Kaitlyn telling him that she was pregnant was the last thing Alex had expected her to say, and yet there was no reason why it should come as a surprise, either.
But to think he was going to be a dad. That they were going to be parents.
It was both the most wonderful news and the most daunting news at the same time.
And what about Kaitlyn? What did she think of it?
“Are you happy?” he asked.
Part of him feared she’d say no and that she intended not to have the baby. It caused his heart to skip a beat, but then a wave of relief spread through him at the sight of the smile breaking over her face.
“I am. Are you?”
Alex felt tears welling up in his eyes. He didn’t think he’d ever felt happier.
It was the most extraordinary feeling, an elation such as he’d never known.
All those years of business, all those profits, all those successes, and yet they paled into insignificance next to the joy he felt at sharing this wonderful news with the woman he loved.
“I… I can’t believe it. I don’t know what to say. I’m so happy, I could burst,” he exclaimed, throwing his arms around her.
Their lips met in a kiss, and it felt to Alex as though he was floating on air. He had so many questions. So many thoughts were going around in his mind. He couldn’t think straight. As their lips parted, he was smiling from ear to ear.
“I couldn’t believe it either at first. I was so worried about telling you.
I found out when I got back here. I didn’t keep it from you before, in New York, I mean.
But I wasn’t sure if you’d be happy or not,” Kaitlyn said.
“It’s going to mean a big change for both of us.
We’ve got to be absolutely sure about… us. ”
Alex nodded. He knew what she was saying, and she was right.
They had to be sure. But the thought of a baby, of a new life, changed everything for him.
The business had always been his first and last thought each day.
It had consumed him. And yet his focus on it had left him feeling empty.
He’d nearly lost what was most important.
Kaitlyn mattered far more than money and material success.
The news of the baby only brought that more sharply into focus.
“And I want us to be sure. That’s why I want you to believe me when I say I’m going to step back from the business. Actually, I had another idea, even before you told me about the baby. I still can’t believe… Why don’t we come back to Cedarhurst?”
She looked at him in surprise. “But New York’s your life. You wouldn’t want to come back here,” she said.
But Alex shook his head. He’d already made up his mind.
New York didn’t mean anything to him. He had no roots there, no ties, except the superficial.
It was just a place. Cedarhurst meant something.
It held memories for them both. It was a special place.
Alex now knew he wanted to make it a place in which to make memories again — as a family.
“But imagine it. We could do up the house. There’s a wonderful garden. Junior could go to the high school. My mom’s nearby for babysitting. This is where we met. I can’t think of anywhere better. I don’t want to go back to New York. Unless you do,” he said.
But the look on Kaitlyn’s face was enough for him to know she didn’t want to go back, either.
“You’ll hear no complaints from me. I could open a studio here. A gallery, even,” she said, and Alex nodded.
“That’s a wonderful idea. But what matters most is us being together. That’s right, isn’t it? You me, and…”
“Junior,” Kaitlyn said, laughing as she took Alex’s hand in hers and placed it gently on her stomach.
The thought of the baby — their baby — was extraordinary. Alex knew it was going to take some getting used to. What would his mom say? What would Hilary say?
“I’m so proud of you,” Alex said, smiling at Kaitlyn, who blushed.
“I don’t think I was cut out to be the wife of a CEO,” she replied, and Alex laughed.
“That doesn’t matter now, does it? You can be the wife of an ex-mathlete. That’s good enough for me. Or the wife of a fool who didn’t realize what he had until he almost lost it.”
He put his arms around her again, holding her close.
In that moment, he felt as though his whole world was in his arms. It was an extraordinary feeling, and Alex knew that good fortune was his.
The good fortune of a second chance. It meant everything to him.
Kaitlyn meant everything to him. He loved her, and she loved him.
Nothing else mattered. He felt a fool for having thought it did, and for having allowed himself to be so consumed by those things that really didn’t matter one little bit.
“And you’re sure you’ll be happy here?” she asked.
He sat back and smiled. “I might have to find a hobby, though I always swore to myself I wouldn’t become one of those executive types who played golf. Perhaps I’ll grow vegetables, or read books, or… I know, how about fixing up a Betsy II and taking you and Junior to the drive-thru.”
Kaitlyn laughed.
“I don’t think you can ever replace Betsy.”
He took her hands between his, smiling at her as he remembered what he had in his pocket.
“Wait a moment. I have to do this properly,” he said, and, taking out the red plush velvet box he’d brought with him from New York, he got down on one knee.
“Oh! You don’t need to do this. How many proposals have I had?” she exclaimed, smiling and shaking her head.
But Alex wouldn’t listen. “I have to. I want this to be a new start,” he said. “Will you marry me, Kaitlyn?”
He opened the box as he said the words, and Kaitlyn rolled her eyes and laughed.
He hoped it wasn’t because of what he’d said, but rather, because of what was in the box.
There, in the space where the diamond might have been, was a plastic drinking straw, shaped like a ring, just as it had been on prom night.
“I will, yes,” she said as he took the “ring” from the box and slipped it onto her finger.
“Don’t worry, I have a diamond one somewhere, too, but I thought you’d appreciate this one first,” he said, sitting back on the couch and kissing her.
For a moment, they rested their foreheads together, their hands clasped.
It was the perfect moment, and it felt like a beginning, too.
This was the new start Alex wanted, for them both.
For them all. They had the baby to think about now, and the prospect of new life brought with it a sense of responsibility Alex hadn’t known before.
It was intimidating, and yet to share it with Kaitlyn felt like the start of a new adventure.
“It’s perfect. I don’t need diamonds, or fancy clothes, or to go to expensive restaurants. I just want us to be together. That’s all. We’ve got so much to look forward to. I’m so happy you pursued me,” she said.
He smiled at her, holding out his hand.
“I know a fancy restaurant we can go to. Actually, it’s the most exclusive in town,” he said.
Kaitlyn shook her head. “No… What did I just say?” she replied, but he laughed and shook his head.
“Burger, fries, and a cola? I heard the drive-thru got a Michelin Star last year.”
A smile broke over her face, and she laughed. “We’ll have to go in my mom’s car. It hasn’t been started in months. You might have to open the hood.”
“Or you might have to bounce up and down as I turn it over, just like with Betsy,” he said, rising to his feet and urging her to follow him.
To their surprise, the car started the first time, and they drove the short distance to the drive-thru, ordering exactly the same meal as they used to when they’d go there in Betsy.
Sitting in the parking lot, they balanced the colas on the dashboard and ate the burgers and fries out of the paper wrappings.
“I think it tastes better than any fancy restaurant. It’s about memories as much as what you’re eating. I don’t know how we both stayed so trim eating this all the time,” Kaitlyn said, holding her half-eaten burger in hand.
“Do you remember when I ate three of them on a dare? It was Sean who bet me I couldn’t,” Alex said.
Kaitlyn laughed. “He refused to pay because you threw it up,” she said.
“But I did eat them,” Alex replied.
Sitting there in the parking lot — slurping colas and eating salty fries — felt like coming full circle.
This was where it had all started, and it was here that it was going to begin again.
Alex was determined that things would be different this time.
They had to be. He had responsibilities now — a baby on the way, and a woman he loved more than anything in all the world.
It made him wonder how he’d ever thought anything else could be important.
“What happens now?” Alex asked as they drove back to Kaitlyn’s house.
“Well, you’re not going back to New York tonight, are you?” she asked, glancing at him fearfully.
He smiled and shook his head. “Hilary’s in charge now. I don’t need to go back. We have all the time in the world.”
He meant it, and he knew there was nowhere he’d rather be than right there with her.
Only a fool would choose otherwise, and Alex had no intention of being a fool any longer.
He’d lost Kaitlyn once, and he’d nearly lost her twice.
It was third time’s a charm, and this time, Alex intended to make it work — for him, for Kaitlyn, and for Junior.
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