Dear lovers,

When planning your wedding, it’s good to start early. Leaving things till the last minute can result in disappointment and rob you of the joy you deserve on your special day.

Sometimes, though, things that don’t go according to plan make the best plans of all. Sometimes, you may think you want something in life, only to discover that you want something else.

When I started this blog, all I wanted was to get married. It was like a benchmark for success in my life—one I couldn’t see past.

Now, I’m not married, but I have something else. I have a man who loves me. I have a little girl who’ll need someone like me in her future, and I can’t wait to be there for her when she does. For now, I’m content with giving her all the love she could ever want, and a new member of her family. She doesn’t know it yet, but she will soon be hearing the pitter-patter of little feet.

I’m starting a new era in my life, and while I’ll always love weddings, love, and you, my beautiful readers, I love my man, my little girl, and myself, too. And nothing’s more important than that.

Love,

Romy

I hit Submit on the blog post. Done.

Leaning down, I ruffle the fur of the Labrador’s neck. I can’t wait to introduce this little guy to Coco.

I swivel in my new office chair and stare at the boxes in Elio’s room—our room—that I’ve yet to unpack. There are a few pieces of clothing that I still have to hang in the closet, but there’s one that just doesn’t belong here. My wedding dress. I hop up off the chair and walk to the bed. Unzipping the white protective covering, I pull out the dress that I’d planned to wear while marrying Jeremy and decide I can’t stand the sight of it. I mean . . . crystals and a train? What the hell was I thinking?

This dress isn’t me. This dress is the girl I wanted to be, but as I crumple up several thousand dollars’ worth of fabric, failed hopes and dreams, I realize that girl is long gone, and this dress needs to go too.

Fueled by excitement, I grab my phone and head downstairs, followed closely by an over-excited puppy whose teeth nip at the gown in my hands as it trails across the floor. Apparently, my mood is contagious. I hurry through the kitchen, collecting one more necessary supply from the junk drawer—matches. Elio and Coco will be back from the store soon with hot dogs to grill, but I have other plans.

My phone buzzes with a message, and I swipe to open it.

Emma: We’re still on for this barbecue tomorrow night, right?

Ha. I head out onto the deck and empty the bottle of lighter fluid on the coals. I kiss the dress goodbye, throw it on the Webber, light the match, and watch it burn. Laughter bubbles up my throat as I snap a few pictures on my phone. These will make an awesome blog post. And Emma will lose it when she finds out what I’ve done.

I tap out a quick reply to her text from before.

Romy: About that barbecue . . . we may want to eat out.

Emma: That’s what she said!

Romy: Get your mind out of the gutter. I’ll pick you up at six.

Emma: I thought you wanted me to try Elio’s sausage?

Romy: *glares at you*

Emma: Okay, okay! Mind out of the gutter. See you tomorrow, killjoy.

Smiling, I grab the bottle of lighter fluid, snatch up the puppy, and head into the kitchen. Elio and Coco come around the corner and the little girl screams.

“Womy got a puppy?”

Her daddy’s eyes are wide with what I’m sure is shock, but they’re not focused on the new addition to the family—they’re focused on the fire behind me.

“Correction, little lady,” I say with a huge grin. “You have a puppy.”

Her jaw drops. The little guy squirms in my arms, desperate to get to Coco and no doubt see what she’s all about. I set him down on his feet and he runs to her, licking her face as she squeals.

“Er, babe? Why is there a bonfire on our back deck?”

I set the lighter fluid on the kitchen counter and wrap my arms around him. “Because I just set my wedding dress on fire.”

He blinks. I can see the shock isn’t registering, and then his eyes widen just a fraction and he pulls back to study my face. “But you love that dress.”

“No, I loved the idea of that dress, but you know what?” I kiss his lips as he finally relaxes and wraps his arms around me. “I got something better than the wedding I always wanted.”

Those deep brown eyes study mine. “Really?”

I nod. “I got a family, a place, and people to belong to.”

He kisses the tip of my nose, his beard tickling my face. “Hell yes, you did.”

“And you know what else?”

“What?” he asks in a low, rumbling whisper.

“Life couldn’t be more perfect.”

Elio kisses my lips. It’s sweet and chaste, but his eyes tell me it was more for Coco’s benefit because the kind of kisses he wants to give are definitely not suitable for four-year-old consumption.

When he pulls away, I glance at the adorable kid in question. Coco and her new puppy are sharing a few kisses of their own. She has what I assume are happy tears streaming down her cheeks as he sits on her tummy and licks the saltwater from her face to a soundtrack of giggles.

I smile to myself and turn in Elio’s arms so that I’m facing the deck. The bonfire is still roaring, the black smoke rising high into the chilly, winter air. “We may want to eat out tonight.”

“I’m gonna be eating something out tonight, and it’s not food,” Elio whispers, as he nuzzles my neck.

A chuckle escapes me. I lean back into his warmth and watch the last shred of the old Romy Love go up in smoke. Maybe someday Elio will get down on one knee and ask me to be his wife. One day I might put on a new dress and walk down the aisle toward this incredible man and his unforgettable daughter. We’ll make this thing official, but even with his ring on my finger, I don’t see how life could get more perfect than it is right now.

Between miscommunications, muffins, and madness, the path that led us here wasn’t exactly smooth, but now? Now I have everything I ever wanted: a child, a family, and a hot baker who can’t get enough of my buns.