Chapter 22 Six Months Later #4
He drew in a breath. “As you may have noticed, I’m not your ordinary cat.
Some might even say I’m hard to love. My deepest fear was that I would be the reason my mother would never remarry.
Madison, like Mother, is easy to love, but me?
Debatable. It’s hard enough for any single mother to find a man who accepts and loves her kids, but toss me into the mix and I would guess it increases the improbability by a lot.
For example, my own father could not accept me.
But Grady? He never tried to change me. He never ridiculed me because I’m different.
He just loves me. There’s no way to explain how something so wonderful happened to us, but it did.
It cannot be understood with a flow chart or mathematical calculations.
Which leaves me to believe that there is something divine at work. And, for that, I’m grateful.”
He turned to face Grady and me directly. “Grady, thank you for being the one. For all of us.”
There wasn’t a dry eye on that patio, including mine.
Madison ran up to the microphone next and spoke into it with her little girl voice, so sweet my chest ached with love.
“Mommy and Grady, I’m glad you got married, and I love our new house.
Thank you, Grady, for not minding that I’m always around.
And for letting me get the sparkly shoes even though I didn’t really need them.
And most of all, thanks for being our dad now.
I prayed and prayed, and never gave up believing that you would be.
And God answered my prayers.” She beamed.
“I’m glad you’re there when I go to sleep and when I wake up and for going to my teacher conferences and for reading me books. I love you. And I love you, Mommy.”
Grady rose to his feet, rushing over to pick Madison up, holding her close for a moment.
When he set her down, he swiped his fingers under his damp eyes, then picked up the mic.
“I want to make one thing clear. Robbie, you are a gift. One I didn’t see coming.
But, buddy, God doesn’t make mistakes, and he sure didn’t with you.
It’s my honor to be your father, to watch as you use your brilliant mind to make the world better.
And Sweet Pea, you’re my little girl. Always will be.
I’m the lucky one, and don’t ever think I don’t know it.
” He picked up his glass of wine from our table and held it aloft.
“Thank you, everyone, for being with us today and for all the ways you encouraged and supported our love story. We may have taken a while to figure it all out, but we finally did. To family. To friends who feel like family. And finally, to my beautiful bride for bringing me into her world and letting me stay.”
Everyone raised their glasses, toasting, laughing, cheering—the scent of love as thick in the air as apple blossoms.
“Now, let’s eat, drink and be merry,” Grady said.
Once again, everyone cheered.
The reception spilled from the patio into the garden as the sky turned amber and pink. Hunter had traded the acoustic guitar for a portable speaker, and music drifted across the yard with a mix that Grady and I had put together on a lazy Sunday.
Most everyone joined us on the dance floor.
Even my mother and father were dancing. Gillian, despite her belly, was shaking it with the best of them.
But at the start of “Wake Me Up Before you Go-Go,” she abruptly stopped in the middle of the dance floor and looked down. Liquid gushed from under her skirt.
Her water had broken.
For one second, the whole party froze. The music kept playing, but everyone stopped. Then chaos.
Alex, by her side, led her over to a chair. Grace and Bella knelt on the grass beside her. “The baby’s coming now?” Grace asked.
“I think so,” Gillian said.
“I’ll pull the car around,” Alex said.
“I’ll drive,” Peter said. “You’ve had wine.”
“Yes, good point.” Alex ran his hands through his hair.
“Stay with Gillian,” Peter said. “I’ll get the car.”
He took off running.
“I’ve mapped the fastest route to the hospital,” Robbie said, appearing with his phone. “It’s fourteen minutes. I’ve also looked up the on-call OB schedule. Dr. Henley is on tonight. She has excellent reviews.”
“Thank you, Robbie,” Gillian said. “But, for once, we’re ahead of you.”
Seconds later, Alex guided Gillian out to the driveway. We all followed, reception forgotten. Alex helped Gillian into the passenger seat. Peter waited behind the wheel. Bella and Grace huddled together, both looking shaken.
“We’ll stay with the girls,” I said. “Don’t worry, they’re safe with us.”
“I’m sorry to ruin the fun,” Gillian said, reaching out of the window to take my hand.
“Not to worry. This is going to make a great story to tell the baby someday,” I said.
Peter pulled away, gravel crunching, taillights disappearing down Driftwood Lane. The party stood, watching them go, waving and shouting good wishes.
Grace sidled up next to me, leaning her cheek against my shoulder. “Will she be okay?”
“Women have had babies since the beginning of time,” I said, wrapping her in a hug. “She’s going to be fine.”
Madison tugged at my arm. “Does this mean Auntie Gillian is having the baby right now?”
“That’s right,” I said.
Madison looked delighted. “This is the best wedding ever.”
Baby Leo made his entrance at three minutes after midnight. By the time we got the text from Alex, Bella and Grace had fallen asleep on our sectional. My kids had gone up to bed as well. After we heard that all was well and mother and baby were resting, Grady and I headed upstairs.
I changed into a pair of cotton pajamas, brushed my teeth and washed my face before getting in to bed with Grady. He was already there, sitting up against a stack of pillows, with an envelope in his hand.
”I have a wedding gift for you.” Grady handed me the envelope.
I opened it, expecting a weekend getaway. What I found was a printed itinerary, fourteen pages, one for each day, with photographs. Two weeks in the Netherlands. At the height of tulip season.
I read it slowly, my hand over my mouth.
We'd start in Lisse, arriving at peak bloom, when the fields surrounding the village erupt into stripes of color so vivid they look painted, stretching to the horizon in every direction.
We'd spend a full day at Keukenhof, the most famous flower garden in the world, where seven million bulbs bloom at once.
Seven million! There was a bicycle ride planned through the tulip fields, pedaling along narrow paths between walls of color and a private picnic arranged at a secluded farm.
From there, we'd travel to Giethoorn, a village with no roads, only canals, where thatched-roof cottages sat among ancient orchards just coming into blossom. We'd glide through the village by boat and eat at a Michelin-starred restaurant I'd only ever read about in magazines.
Then Texel Island, off the northern coast, where the dunes were scattered with wildflowers in late spring and the skies were dark enough to see every star.
Bike rides along the North Sea. A spa day.
Sunset walks on empty beaches. And finally, back to Amsterdam for two last nights in a canal house hotel, ending with a private dinner in a walled garden, surrounded by tulips.
I looked up at him. “This is … beyond anything I ever thought possible.”
“You deserve a honeymoon, and it’s the perfect time to go.”
I looked at the dates again. “We leave three days from now. What about the kids?”
“They’re staying with Seraphina while we’re gone. She offered, so don’t protest.”
I laughed. “You’ve been busy. How did you know where to go?”
“Seraphina knows a travel writer who specializes in the Netherlands. She helped me put it together.”
Fourteen days. No shop, no schedules, no school drop-offs. Just flowers and canals and starlight and the man I loved.
“I cannot imagine anything better,” I said. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. The first trip of many, I hope. Making memories with my favorite person.” He held out his hand. “But for now, let’s enjoy our official wedding night.”
My breath caught at the look in his eyes. I handed him the itinerary and watched him set it on the bedside table and turn off the light. In the dark, I reached for him and he reached for me, and I forgot all about tulips or canals.
Making memories with my favorite person.
Thank you for reading Second Bloom! \