Chapter 42
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Andrew
She said yes.
SHE SAID YES!
My body continues to tremble with excitement as I hold her against me. She thought I brought her here to break up. She couldn’t have been further from the truth. Retrieving a scrap of paper from my pocket, I hold it out to her now.
“What’s this?” she asks breathlessly, her cheeks flush with color.
“The receipt.”
She raises an eyebrow. “I’m sure it was a very expensive ring, I don’t need to see the price.” She laughs.
“Not the price, the date.”
She reads the small smeared print and looks up at me in shock. “You bought this the day I found out that you remembered me? That was forever ago,” she sputters.
“I was waiting for the perfect moment, and then you were taken away. I realized that life is too short, too unpredictable to wait for some hypothetical perfect moment. I’m showing you this, not to tell you I’m a fool for waiting, which I am, but to tell you that this proposal has nothing to do with the fact that you got pregnant. I love you so much. The fact that you’re carrying my child is an added bonus.”
Her lips part, but an incoherent noise tumbles out. I smile, because I understand what she wants to convey by the overwhelming emotion filling her eyes.
“Okay, ready for a little more?”
“How can there possibly be more?” she asks, and not for the first time.
I might have a habit of going a little overboard where Tessa is involved. A subconscious intent to replace the bad in her life with good. Now that she will be my wife, I’ll get every day of the rest of our lives to be the sunshine she needs.
My wife.
I grin at the thought, but realize she’s still looking at me to respond. Fishing keys out of my pocket, I unlock the old cabin and hold open the door for her to enter. She looks around slowly, taking in the antique wooden furniture and seventies style decor.
“Did you ask me to marry you just to take me into this creepy cabin to murder me then?”
I chuckle. “I want us to buy it.” I wring my hands together nervously.
“Aren’t you full of surprises today, Blackwell?”
“I know it needs a lot of work, the owner is moving to Florida or something, and put it up for sale at a good price.” I rush across the room. “In this wall, we could put in a window and we’d be able to have breakfast while looking over the lake. Of course, I’ll install a gate around the property to keep the baby safe. I know it looks like shit now, but we will add onto it, and—”
“It’s perfect.”
“I know Alder Grove wouldn’t be your first pick for a place to have a home, but my parents are here, and Chase, and even my sister is looking into—Wait, did you just say it’s perfect?” I ask, out of breath from my nervous rambling.
“Yes.” She giggles. “Everything is perfect, Andrew. Let’s fucking do this,” she shouts, her blue eyes sparkle with elation.
“Fuck yes,” I growl and charge forward.
She squeals when I pin her to the wall to kiss her, my hands travelling up her sides wanting nothing more than to tear her flimsy top off.
My phone vibrates in my pocket, and she breaks away with a laugh. “Did you bring Littlefinger to celebrate?” she teases.
“Hell no, and we are getting rid of that thing. You’ll have more than enough to handle now, sweetheart.” She rolls her eyes and smiles. I pull out my phone and see exactly what I feared. “Looks like the celebrating will have to wait.” I sigh.
Her chest heaves and I know she’s just as eager. “Why?” The scowl of her pouting lips only makes me want her more.
“I am terrible at writing. Who do you think helped me plot all of this anyway?”
As if on cue, a tiny fist bangs on the front door. Her high-pitched voice pierces through the walls. “You cannot keep me in the dark. I demand to know what is happening. Oh my god, Andrew, did she say yes? TESSA KINSLEY, DID YOU SAY YES? WHAT’S HAPPENING?”
Tessa leans forward for a minute and lays her head against my shoulder. “Better let her in before she destroys our new home.” She starts to walk past me, but I grab her hand and spin her back to me.
“Whatever you say, fiancée,” I whisper and watch goosebumps break out across her arms and neck. Biting her bottom lip, she beams and practically floats the rest of the way to the door.
I look over Tessa’s shoulder as she throws open the door to my frantic, wide-eyed twin.
Her voice is deadly low as her eyes ping pong from me to my bride. “What. The. Shit. Happened?”
Tessa looks back at me, and I nod, giving her permission to spill our good news.
“Looks like we’re going to be sisters,” Tessa says.
Marybeth’s head nearly does a complete three-sixty-degree turn. Her arms fly around Tessa as she jumps up and down and cries. Tessa laughs, shaking her head at me, but I don’t miss the way her eyes water too. When she finally snakes out of my sister’s grasp, I realize too late that I’m the next victim.
Her arms grasp around my stomach, and she squeezes until I have a legitimate concern about passing out. Wordlessly, I beg Tessa for help. She snorts but pries her away, leaving me gasping for air.
Marybeth claps with excitement as she spins back to Tessa. “I can’t believe you really said yes, I thought for sure you would be difficult.”
“Never said she wasn’t difficult about it,” I say out of the side of my mouth, earning me a playful smack from Tessa.
“Okay, this is the best thing to happen in the history of ever. I love you both, I am freaking thrilled, but I, uh, really have to take this call.” I raise an eyebrow as my sister flips her back to us, and puts her phone to her ear. Tessa slides over to lean against me. I wrap my arms around her, and let my hands cradle her bump.
We’re going to have a baby, be a family.
I should be scared, but all I feel is a growing excitement for our future.
“Does Chase know too?” Tessa asks.
I grin. “Yeah. Man, that guy is really bad with a secret. Couldn’t handle the pressure and told us to take away his phone or he would give it away.”
We laugh and turn back to my sister. Although she’s only a few steps away, Marybeth uses her hand to cover her mouth as she attempts to talk discreetly into the phone.
“Ma, I will get a picture of course, but focus. Now what about the dress? Mhm, well of course traditional white isn’t going to work. Oh yes, that’s a great idea. No, don’t be ridiculous, daffodils are so last season. Well, spring of course. Ugh, does she really have to have a say in that? Fine, one sec.”
Marybeth turns to us with a sweet smile. “Tessa, how do you feel about March?”
“As in March that’s just a few months away March? Why?” she asks suspiciously.
Marybeth’s eyes blink innocently. “Just asking.”
“I mean, I don’t dislik—”
“Thanks,” she interjects.
Tessa stares at my sister, who’s once again turned her back to us and is whispering into the phone. I laugh silently against her hair. We wait a few more minutes before she ends the call and returns her attention to us. “Sorry about that,” she chirps.
Tessa rolls her eyes and laughs. “Blossom, you don’t need to secretly plan the wedding. Just don’t go too extreme, or make me look like Bride Barbie, and you can have full rein.”
Marybeth’s eyes fill with tears again. “You are already the best sister in the whole world,” she whispers, her lower lip trembling.
“Agreed.” Tessa laughs.
Marybeth drags her to the kitchen table and begins asking her ridiculous wedding questions at lightning speed. Tessa answers each of them like a champ, and even though she looks as if she’d rather be doing anything else, she never once brushes her off.
For no particular reason, I find myself glancing past the girls and out the small kitchen window. A small white butterfly flits back and forth against the glass as if it wants nothing more than to be inside with us. I think back to something Tessa said last night, how she saw white butterflies on her birthday, as if they were some sort of sign that I was still with her.
I don’t bring it up, but I read once that many tribes believed white butterflies to be a sign of life and death. I’ve never been superstitious, but the sight of the tiny creature fills me with an undeniable sense of peace.
The fluttering wings catch Tessa’s eyes, and her lips part in surprise. Her eyes find mine, and she smiles softly when she sees I’ve noticed it as well. Her whole face glows, and the sunshine filtering through the window highlights strands of her hair. She’s absolutely gorgeous, and I can hardly believe she’s going to be my wife.
I’m the happiest man alive.