EPILOGUE
— Eight Months Later —
“I don’t know if I’m ready for this,” Ben said. “I’m sure I’m more nervous than she is.”
Lizzie smiled because she knew he was right. It was the end of August, and they were driving Maya to Chapel Hill, the Tahoe packed with dorm room necessities.
Maya sat contently in the back seat, headphones on, humming along to the latest Dua Lipa song. Lizzie reached over and grabbed Ben’s hand. “At least she picked UNC. It’s only a two-and-a-half-hour drive. We’ll still see a lot of her.”
“I kinda wish we’d talked her into taking her car. So she could come home whenever she wanted.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s exactly why she left it,” Lizzie said. “She’ll be fine.”
“I know. I know. Baby bird’s gotta fly sometime.”
The last eight months had whizzed by in a hectic, life-changing blur. Lizzie purchased the new house in January. In March, Ben, Maya, and Jasper moved in. Before they loaded moving trucks, Lizzie spent every spare second with Ben to make sure they were both still on board with the idea after fully getting to know each other. Turned out, Ben was like a good whiskey—the longer she knew him, the better he got.
Lizzie had lived alone for years and become pretty set in her ways. She’d been nervous about living with someone again, but adjusted easily. Taking on a “mom” role had jumbled some nerves too, but Maya was mature for her age and pretty much took care of herself. Ben handled the parental duties, and Lizzie treated Maya more like a friend than a daughter.
“You worried about living all alone with me?” Lizzie teased.
“Not one bit,” he said, squeezing her hand. “I’m sure it’ll take some getting used to—Maya being gone, not living with you—but I’ll adjust. You know, after crying myself to sleep for a few days. You?”
“Well, it will be quite a struggle,” she said, waggling her eyebrows. “Coming home to a smart, sexy man every night. How ever will I manage?”
He smiled, accustomed to her sarcasm-wrapped compliments. In the last eight months, Lizzie had discovered that being in a relationship wasn’t the burden she always pictured it would be. She looked forward to every minute with Ben. So much so, that she’d hired a night manager, which allowed her to work whatever hours she wanted. That meant quittin’ time by five.
“You guys know I can hear you, right?” Maya said from the backseat. “Not sure where that conversation was headed, but thought I might need to nip it.”
“A dad can’t tell his daughter he’s going to miss her?” Ben asked innocently.
“That’s not the part I was talking about,” Maya said.
“Right. Well, I am going to miss you,” Ben said.
They arrived at Maya’s dorm, got her settled, and, after a tearful goodbye, Ben and Lizzie headed home. It was a quiet ride. And while Ben was no doubt lost in thoughts of Maya and the past they’d shared, Lizzie was consumed with worries for the future.
There had been so many changes to her life, and, ready or not, more were coming. She’d already planned to accept Ben’s marriage proposal after Maya left, and that was before this latest development. She laid a hand on her stomach, which fluttered at the notion of telling Ben.
They got back to the house and let the dogs out.
“You know what this means, don’t you?” Ben slid up behind her and put his arms around her waist.
“We can do it anywhere, anytime?”
“Yes!”
She turned in his arms and kissed him. “Kitchen floor?”
“Too hard,” he mumbled near her ear. “No reason to be uncomfortable.”
“Living room sofa?”
“Too short. We don’t fit properly. I need room to work.”
“Okay, Goldilocks. How about the bed, but we leave the door open?” she said, and they laughed.
“Perfect.”
The dogs barked, wanting to come back in.
“They’re cookin’ in the heat,” Lizzie said. “Plus, they’re probably starving. Guess we still have some kids to take care of.”
While Ben filled the dog bowls, Lizzie snuck into their bedroom. She needed to make her big announcement before the nerves talked her out of it.
She went to Ben’s nightstand drawer, extracted and opened the little black box that had been there for months, and exchanged her opal for the two-carat diamond.
Ben had proposed a hundred times since he’d moved in. It had become a running joke between them. She’d ask what was for dinner, and he’d say a diamond ring. Or she’d ask what he wanted for his birthday, and he’d say a new wife.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to marry Ben. It had just seemed so permanent. So, forever. But she was ready to commit now. In fact, she’d never been more sure of anything.
She held out her left hand to admire the shine of the diamond on her ring finger. With her right, she clutched her stomach. “Here goes nothing,” she whispered.
When she returned to the kitchen, the dogs were eagerly scarfing down kibble, and Ben was pouring two glasses of champagne. Better tell him quick then.
“I feel bad celebrating that my daughter’s moved out,” he said. “I’ll miss her terribly, but I’ve also never felt so free.”
“Sure you don’t want to get rid of me and savor the bachelor life for a while?”
“Are you kidding? I want to—” He froze when he saw the engagement ring. “Lizzie?”
“Figure you should make an honest woman out of me.” She shrugged.
“You’ll marry me?”
“Sure.” She smiled. “Why not?”
“Well, at least let me do this properly.” He approached her, slid the ring off her finger, and knelt in front of her. “Elizabeth Michelle Parker. I love you. I think I fell in love with you the first time I saw you behind the bar, pouring tequila and slipping tips into your bra. Since then, I’ve come to realize what an amazing woman you are. Smart, funny, willful, and compassionate. I want to continue unpacking everything about you for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me?” He held up the ring.
“You know I’m not into all the mushy stuff. But I love you too, Mansfield. And yes, I’ll marry you. I don’t know what I’ve been waiting for. You’re the only man to capture my heart so completely. I should’ve said yes a long time ago.”
He slipped the ring on her finger and stood to kiss her. “Finally. Now we have a real reason to celebrate.” He handed her one of the glasses.
“About that.”
His face flashed confusion. “We’re not celebrating?”
“Oh, yes, we are,” she said. “It’s just that…I have some news…news that has nothing to do with why I’m marrying you. I want that idea out of your head right now.”
He waited for her to continue.
“I’m in a certain way. A way that means I shouldn’t drink to celebrate.” She raised her eyebrows. “I hope you’re happy about it. I am.”
It only took him a second to figure out what she meant. “Are you pregnant? Lizzie, please don’t mess with me. Is that what you’re saying?”
She nodded. He put down the glass and hopped up and down like a little kid at Christmas.
“Guess you’re okay with it?” she said with a grin.
“Okay? I’m so overjoyed I can’t even tell you.” He swooped her into his arms. “I’m gettin’ and wife and another kid!”
Relief flooded her. “Oh, good,” she said. “I know we weren’t planning this, and I assumed you’d take the news all right. But there was always the chance that you’d been there, done that, and wouldn’t want to start over after having just shipped off the last one.”
He put both hands on her face to get her attention. “Lizzie. I’m thrilled. To marry you. To have a child with you. To take this journey together. I could not be more excited.”
“I thought about telling you and Maya before she left, but I didn’t want to shift focus from her excitement to start school. I’ll let you decide when and how we break the news.”
“She’ll be ecstatic. I already know it. And my parents will freak too. How about your family?”
“Some will cheer, some will groan, and don’t be surprised when they start exchanging money.”
“Huh?”
“They have some kind of betting pool going about when I’ll settle down.”
“Who would bet against you?”
“Not necessarily against me. I think it’s more of a timing thing. I’m curious if there’s a stipulation for a baby though. That might get someone a bonus.”
He laughed. “Maybe you should win the money for going above and beyond. I bet no one gambled on marriage and a baby.”
“I do like to keep people guessing,” she said with a wink, sliding her arms around his neck. “And stirring up trouble.”
“When do you want to tell them?”
“Sunday dinner starts in half an hour. You game?”
“After you, Mrs. Mansfield.”