43. Blake
Chapter 43
Blake
T he summer sun beat down on my shoulders as I spread the picnic blanket across the grassy field.
Amelia squealed with delight, immediately trying to crawl off the edge and explore the nearby wildflowers.
Once she became mobile, all bets were off and I was pretty sure I was never going to relax again.
"Oh no you don't, strawberry," I laughed, scooping her up before she could make her escape. "Not until your sunscreen dries."
She wrinkled her nose at me, her chubby hands reaching for my face as I kissed her forehead. Nine months old and already so determined. So full of curiosity. Every day with her was a new adventure, and I couldn't believe how lucky I was that she was ours. Officially, legally, forever ours.
I glanced over at Xander, who was retrieving something from the truck. The afternoon light cast a golden glow over him, highlighting the strong lines of his shoulders beneath his t-shirt. The sight of him still made my heart skip a beat, even after all these months together.
"You look happy," he said, catching me staring as he walked back to the blanket. He was carrying a cardboard tube in one hand and a small cooler in the other.
"I am happy," I replied.
Xander's eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled, setting down the cooler. "Are you ready to get to work on a very important project?"
"Intriguing," I teased, settling Amelia on my lap. "Are you plotting something, Farrington?"
"Always." He winked, and my stomach did that little flip it always did when he looked at me that way–like I was the most interesting person he'd ever met.
He sat down on the blanket beside us, his knee pressing against mine. Amelia immediately lunged for him, and he caught her with practiced ease, lifting her high in the air until she giggled.
When he released her onto the blanket between us, she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, rocking back and forth with determination. In the past week, she'd mastered a speedy army crawl that had us childproofing every corner of the cottage. Now she was working on the real thing, her little bottom wiggling in the air as she tried to coordinate her limbs.
"She's going to be walking before we know it," I said, watching her with pride as she successfully moved forward a few inches, reached for a dandelion, and promptly tried to eat it.
"Amelia, no," Xander gently removed the flower from her grasp and replaced it with a teething ring from the diaper bag.
"Flowers are for looking, not for eating."
She accepted the trade with minimal protest, gnawing happily on the rubber toy while continuing to explore the edges of the blanket.
"So," I said, watching them together.
"Are you going to tell me why we're here?"
Xander kept one eye on Amelia as she ventured toward the corner of the blanket, reaching for the cooler when she needed redirection. "Do you know where we are right now?"
I looked around at the open field, the distant tree line, the rolling hills beyond. It was beautiful, but not particularly distinctive. "Somewhere on Booker's property?"
"Yes," Xander nodded, "but specifically, this is where I'm building the house."
My eyes widened as I took in the surroundings with new understanding.
He pulled the cap off the tube and slid out a roll of blueprints. "The contractor's starting next month."
He spread the plans out on the blanket, weighing down the corners with stones he'd collected from nearby. I leaned forward, studying the drawings with growing interest. This wasn't the small, practical house he'd first described to me all those months ago.
"This is... different from what you originally planned," I said, tracing a finger along one of the lines. The house was larger, more open. Generous windows looked out over the fields, and a wide porch wrapped around the entire structure.
"I realized Booker was right. He was far too proud of that when I told him, by the way," Xander admitted, his attention divided between the blueprints and Amelia, who had discovered she could pull herself up to sitting and was now clapping her hands in self-congratulation. "The old layout was for a life I never wanted. This is what I need, what we need. I want a home. A real home."
Something in his voice made me look up at him. His eyes were soft, vulnerable in a way he rarely allowed himself to be. My heart thumped against my ribs as he continued.
"Here, look at this," he said, shifting slightly to point at a section of the blueprint. "This is the main living area. Open concept, so whoever's cooking can still be part of whatever's happening in the living room."
I nodded, drinking in the details.
"And here," he continued, his finger moving across the page, "this is the office. Plenty of natural light, but set back from the main living spaces so it's quiet enough to work."
"It's beautiful," I said, genuinely impressed. "You've really thought this through."
"I have," he agreed. Then, with a hint of nervousness in his voice: "And this... this is the studio."
My breath caught as I followed his finger to a large room on the ground floor. It had high ceilings, massive windows facing north for the best natural light, and built-in storage along one wall.
"The studio," I repeated, unable to form a more coherent response.
"For you," Xander clarified, as if I might have misunderstood. "I figured you'd need somewhere to work."
I stared at the blueprint, then at him, bewildered. We hadn’t talked about this. We hadn’t discussed the future past getting Amelia, and when that happened we’d fallen into a beautiful life that I had just assumed would continue. I’d always known he was building the house, but I guess I just hadn’t even joined up the dots.
"You made a space for me in your house."
"I made a space for you in our house." His voice was soft but steady.
The world seemed to slow down around me. "I always knew you were building it, but I guess I just never thought…"
Amelia chose that moment to flop onto her stomach, pushing up to her hands and knees again with renewed determination. She crawled toward the edge of the blanket, faster than before, making a beeline for a patch of clover.
Xander reached out and gently guided her back to the middle of the blanket, offering her a toy from the diaper bag. The colorful set of plastic keys instantly captured her attention. She sat back on her bottom, babbling happily as she examined her treasure.
He turned to face me fully, taking both my hands in his.
"Blake," he said, "We never really looked at the whole picture before. But the thing is, I can't imagine my life without you in it anymore. You and Amelia – you're everything to me."
My heart hammered in my chest as he continued, his thumbs rubbing small circles on the backs of my hands.
"Look at these plans," he said, gesturing to the blueprints. "Four bedrooms upstairs. One for us, one for Amelia, and some for whoever comes next."
"Whoever comes next?" I echoed, my voice barely above a whisper.
"If that's something you want," he clarified quickly. "More kids. Or not. But the point is, I've been designing this house around a future for the three of us. A future where we're a family… officially."
I could hardly breathe. "Xander..."
He released my hands, and before I could process what was happening, he shifted onto one knee beside the blanket. My heart leapt into my throat as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box.
"I know it started out as pretending and part of me is so happy that we never did this part," he said, his voice steady despite the vulnerability in his eyes. "Because I’m not pretending anymore, Blake. And I’m so happy that I get to do this for real, just once, with you and no one else."
He opened the box, revealing a ring that caught the sunlight and scattered it into rainbows across the blanket. It was stunning – a delicate band with an emerald-cut center stone flanked by smaller diamonds.
"I love you," he said simply. "I love your wildness and your warmth. I love how you see beauty in everything, even in broken things. Even in me. I love watching you with Amelia, seeing the incredible mother you've become. I love that you talk to an imaginary dog named Toby."
I gave a watery laugh at that, tears already streaming down my face.
"I've even designated a spot in our room for a dog bed," he added with a smile. "Because I figure Toby deserves to be real at this point."
I couldn't help the sob that escaped me then, half laugh and half cry. Amelia looked up at the sound, her eyes wide with concern until I gave her a reassuring smile.
"I want to build this house with you, Blake," Xander continued, his voice deepening with emotion. "I want to build a life, a family, a future. I don't just want you to be my fake fiancée anymore. I want you to be my wife. For real."
He took a deep breath, his eyes never leaving mine. "Blake Mitchell, will you marry me?"
For a moment, I couldn't speak. My throat was too tight, my heart too full. In that golden afternoon light, with Amelia babbling happily beside us and the blueprints of our future home spread out before us, I felt something I'd never expected to feel. Completely and utterly at home.
"Yes," I finally managed, my voice breaking on the word. "Yes, of course I'll marry you. I love you so much."
The smile that broke across Xander's face was brighter than the sun. He slid the ring onto my finger, and I wanted to laugh at how it was the perfect fit, unlike the imaginary ring that had started this whole thing. Then he was kissing me, his hands cradling my face like I was something precious, something rare. I kissed him back with everything I had, pouring all the love and hope I felt into it.
When we broke apart, both breathless, Amelia was watching us with a gummy smile, bouncing excitedly. She'd pulled herself up to standing, holding onto the edge of the cooler for support, her chubby legs wobbling but steady. It was the first time she'd stood on her own, and my heart swelled with another wave of emotion.
"Look at you, standing up!" I exclaimed, reaching out to steady her as she bounced on her toes, clearly proud of herself.
Xander's eyes widened in delight. "That's our girl," he said proudly, scooping her up and bringing her into our embrace. "What do you think, little bug? Did Mommy make the right choice?"
Amelia reached for my face, her tiny fingers patting my wet cheeks. I kissed her hand, then leaned against Xander's shoulder, gazing out at the empty field that would soon hold our home.
"So," I said, once I'd found my voice again. "Tell me more about this house of ours."
Xander wrapped an arm around me, holding both Amelia and me close. "Well, the kitchen has a big island where you can sit and have your coffee while I make breakfast."
"And a dishwasher," I added. "I'm not negotiating on that."
"Of course a dishwasher," he agreed with a chuckle. "And the master bathroom has a soaking tub big enough for two."
"Scandalous," I teased, feeling light-headed with happiness.
"The studio has north-facing windows," he continued, "so you get the best light without the glare. And shelves for all your supplies. A sink for cleaning brushes."
"You've thought of everything."
"I've been planning this for a while," he admitted. "Ever since I realized I couldn't imagine my life without you in it."
I looked down at the ring on my finger, still not quite believing this was real. "When did you know?"
He didn't hesitate. "The day you showed up at my door with Amelia in your arms. Everything changed for me that day. I just didn't want to admit it at first."
I leaned up to kiss him again, soft and sweet. "I think I fell for you the day you let her throw up all over you and still looked at her like she hung the moon."
"She did hang the moon," Xander said seriously. "So did you."
Amelia wriggled between us, clearly tired of being squished, and we both laughed. I set her down on the blanket, where she immediately went for the edge of the blueprint, trying to stuff it in her mouth.
"No, no, strawberry," I said, gently redirecting her. "That's our future you're trying to eat."
Xander grabbed the teething toy, offering it to her instead. She accepted the trade with a happy gurgle, rolling onto her back and kicking her legs in the air with newfound energy.
"I need to remember to call Delaney tonight," I said, watching Amelia play. "She's been texting me nursery ideas all week. I think she's nesting."
"How much longer now?" Xander asked, absently arranging the snacks from the cooler.
"About a month, if the baby cooperates," I replied. "She's already eight months. Trace says she's been having Braxton Hicks contractions, and her ankles are swollen to twice their normal size. I promised I'd help her finish setting up the nursery this weekend."
"We can bring dinner when we go," Xander suggested. "I'm sure cooking is the last thing she wants to do right now."
I nodded, touched by his thoughtfulness. "That would be perfect. Plus, it'll give us a chance to tell them about..." I wiggled my fingers, the new ring catching the sunlight.
Xander smiled, reaching out to take my hand, his thumb brushing over the ring. "Trace is never going to let me hear the end of it. He's been telling me to make an honest woman of you for months."
"As if I wasn't the honest one in this relationship from the start," I teased, remembering how our fake engagement had begun.
"I can see us here," he said softly, gazing out at the empty field that would soon hold our dreams. "On the porch in the evenings, watching the sunset. Amelia running through the yard with the dog we'll inevitably get."
"Toby," I supplied with a grin.
"Definitely Toby," he agreed. "Christmas mornings in the living room. Summer barbecues with everyone over. You painting in your studio while I work in the office. Growing old together, surrounded by everything we've built."
I rested my head on his shoulder, my heart so full it felt like it might burst. "It sounds perfect."
"It will be," he promised. "Because it's ours."
We sat there until the sun began to dip toward the horizon, talking about our dreams, our plans, our future. Amelia crawled between us, exploring the blanket with newfound confidence, occasionally pulling herself up against our legs to stand for a few wobbly seconds before plopping back down on her padded bottom. She finally exhausted herself and fell asleep between us, her little face peaceful, one hand clutching her bunny and the other resting on my leg.
As we packed up to head home – to the cottage that had begun as a temporary solution and become the first home we'd shared – I took one last look at the field where our house would stand. Empty now, but full of promise.
Just like my heart had been, before Xander and Amelia filled it to overflowing.
"Ready?" Xander asked, Amelia sleeping against his shoulder as he reached for my hand.
I twined my fingers with his, the new ring catching the light. "Ready."
And I was. For whatever came next. For this beautiful life we were building together, step by step, day by day, dream by dream. Instead of the secrets we built together, we had something real, something whole, and it was only going to get better.