It was a non-Erin week and Noah had business in Washington State. He left five days ago but today he was coming home. I missed him even though he called me multiple times a day. I grew very attached to him so when he was not around I felt it keenly. This was the longest he left me since we worked on our relationship.
It was Friday afternoon, and I expected Noah around four. He called me earlier in the day to ask me to cancel the reservations we had at our favorite restaurant. Before he left, we made those plans, but since being apart for five days, he felt like staying in where we could be alone together.
My cell phone rang. Noah’s name appeared on the screen.
“You landed,” I asked.
“Yes, baby, I’ll be home in about an hour.” He took in a sharp inhale. “I missed you. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Me too. Is there anything you want me to do before you get here?” I asked.
“Natalie, I need to talk to you. Go down to the wine cellar, pick out one of our favorites, open it, and let it breathe.” I thought for sure he would tell me to go up to his room, lay naked on his bed and wait for him.
“Okay. Is it anything serious?”
“We’ll talk when I get home.” He paused then added, “Natalie, I missed you and I love you.”
The next hour passed slowly. I was eager to see him because not only did I spend five days without him, but also now, he wanted to talk about something. I paced the entire house waiting for him and ended upstairs in the hallway when the front door swung open. I ran to the top of the stairs just as Noah was yelling out for me. He looked up, dropped his bags to the floor, and we met in the middle of the staircase: hugging, kissing and just staring at each other.
“Natalie, I’m so glad to be home with you.”
“Being away from you this week was difficult. I don’t know what to do with you first.” I wanted to look at him, touch him, and kiss every part of him.
“Let me change and then I need to talk to you. It’s important and it can’t wait.”
“You’re making me nervous.”
“Baby, don’t be. Go downstairs relax and I’ll be right down.” He kissed my lips firmly then patted my butt. “Go. I’ll be right there.”
I could not relax. What was so urgent? I sat in the family room tapping my foot on the floor. I poured us some wine and waited for Noah to come down. I heard him coming down the stairs. “I’m in the family room,” I yelled out to him.
He walked in wearing pajama bottoms and a tee shirt. The man was mouth watering.
He picked up a glass of wine and handed it to me then took the other glass for himself. “Cheers, my love.” We clinked glasses and took our first sip.
“Noah you have me very nervous. What kind of talk do we need to have?”
“Natalie, being away from you was difficult. Since you came into my life it hasn’t been easy being apart from you.”
“In the beginning you sure made it look easy.” I reminded him.
“In the beginning, it was my punishment. It was torture. At least this time I could talk to you while I was gone.” Noah called me throughout the day and then at night, we talked until one of us fell asleep. “Natalie, I need to take the next step with you. You know how much I love my daughter.” He moved closer to the edge of the couch and placed his glass down on the coffee table. He took my glass from out of my hand and placed it next to his then he held both my hands.
“Yes. And though she’s not my biological daughter, I love her like she is my own.”
“I know you do and I’m happy it worked out that way but I want more.” He brought my palms together and rubbed the tops of both my hands.
“More out of life, more from me?” I was not sure where he was going with this.
“More children with you. The one thing I do not have is a child with a woman I love. I need that.”
My only response was to shake my head because I was at a loss for words.
“My ex and I divorced right after Erin was born. I want to experience having a child with the woman I love by my side. I want to be together when our child cries in the middle of the night. I want to be together when she or he spits out their first vegetables. With Erin’s first steps I had no one to call, no one to be excited with. It was lonely. You, Natalie, are giving me a second chance.”
I cried the first sentence in. “So we will try to get pregnant.”
“Yes, is that something you want?” He had yet to release my hands.
“Yes, I would love to have a child with you, Noah.” He wrapped his arms around me, cradling me while kissing the top of my head.
Before sitting back, he handed my glass back to me and we clinked glasses. “When can you go off the pill?”
“This will be my last pack.” I took a sip of wine then placed the glass back on the table.
“Good the sooner we start the better.” He rose from the couch. “I’ll be right back. I’ll get us some snacks. Oh and I almost forgot. You’ll need this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a red box with a gold clasp.
“Noah!” Tears fell from my eyes. He got down on one knee next to my chair. He opened the box. Inside was a stunning brilliant cut diamond set in platinum. My mouth dropped open. I never held such a large diamond, and I never thought I'd own one. Noah took the ring from the box and reached for my hand.
“Natalie Hill, now will you marry?”