One year later in Las Vegas…
“You booked an entire Ferris wheel for a date?”
Summer’s question contains equal parts astonishment and elation.
“You bet I did,” I say, draping my arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer to me. “We’ve been dating a whole year and I thought we should celebrate in style. I was going to book a race track and find robot kitties to race each other, but I thought it would be a bit much.”
She laughs.
“It would do a lot for the brand,” she says. “Are you sure you don’t want to join our marketing staff?”
I poke her in the side.
“Is being the number one selling pet food in the United States not enough for you now?”
As we make our way to the brightly lit Ferris wheel, Summer shakes her head.
“I was thinking more like the number one selling food in the world. What do you think about a Kitty Kat Kibbles snack line for humans?”
I crack a smile at that one.
“Keep on dreaming big, baby. Organic is in these days.”
Up at the Ferris wheel, one solitary attendant is waiting for us. He gestures us through and we settle into our seat.
“Keep your hands and arms inside at all times,” he instructs, while checking our safety straps. “How many times do you want to go around?” he asks.
I look over at Summer and make a face.
She hides a grin.
“How many go-arounds did you pay for?” she asks.
I shrug.
“I didn’t think that far ahead to be honest.”
I turn to the attendant.
“How about you take us around three or four times then stop us at the top?” I suggest.
“How long do you want to stay at the top?” he asks.
“The normal amount of time, I guess.”
He nods and walks off to start us up.
“That was more work than I expected,” I say with a laugh. “Here I am trying to have a romantic evening with my girlfriend and he wants to play twenty questions.”
She gives me a weak smile.
“What’s the matter?” I ask.
She shakes her head, avoiding my prying look, “Nothing.”
I’ve noticed she’s been acting strange for the past day or two. She’s been busy, and I had to talk her into coming on this date.
“Okay,” I say, “if you say so. I have something to tell you though.”
Summer’s gaze snaps to mine.
“I do, too,” she says.
“Want to wait till we get to the top?” I suggest, “for romantic effect, you know.”
Summer smiles slightly.
“By that, I’m guessing that what you have to tell me is a good thing,” she says.
“What, and yours isn’t?” I ask.
She lays her head on my shoulder, her slight smile betraying nothing.
“Guess you’ll find out in a few minutes,” she says.
I rest my own head on hers, smiling to myself. My gaze spans the horizon, and I wrap my arms around Summer tighter.
“Hang on,” I say, as the Ferris wheel suddenly begins to move upwards. “I’m not sure I like the dangling part about this ride. Now that I’m strapped in, I clearly remember not liking Ferris wheels. At all.”
“It was your bright idea,” she jokes. “You’re not afraid of driving fast cars and yet you’re uneasy on Ferris wheels.”
“It’s all about control, baby,” I say, “And right now, the little man down there is in control, not me.”
Already, the Ferris wheel is halfway up. I take Summer’s hand and squeeze it tightly.
“Look, you can see all of the Vegas skyline from up here,” I point out.
There’s something about gazing at the city skyline at night that always makes me feel like we’re in our own movie.
Because my life really is too good to be true. And this year has proven it more than ever.
I’m able to do what I love with the perfect partner by my side.
Summer is an even better girlfriend than I could’ve ever dreamed. She’s supportive, sweet, and loving.
Sure, her ambition, passion and work ethic are sexy, but that’s not why I love her.
She’s grounded and kind, plus she keeps my head screwed on straight.
Summer is exactly what I need.
The funny thing is, she is exactly what I had no idea I wanted.
Even her Dad and Alice eventually came around to accepting me. Of the two of them, her Dad was much easier to win over. After he saw how Kitty Kat Kibble’s stock jumped after my car wreck, he’d grudgingly accepted me. Over time, we’re learning how to get along with each other too. Mostly by keeping our distance and staying out of each other’s way. I figure that’s a good place to start.
Now Alice on the other hand is a completely different story. It took several long months of handfeeding her treats and long petting sessions before she stopped attacking me. Now that Summer and I live together, Alice is finally tolerating me, although she still pees on my shoes.
As the Ferris wheel creaks to a stop at the very top, I squeeze Summer’s hand even tighter.
“Are you going to tell me now that you’re afraid of heights too?” she jokes. “If so, you suck at picking date ideas.”
“No…” I say slowly.
She gives me a concerned look.
“You’re acting weird,” she says. “What’s going on?”
“Damn,” I say. “I’ve already screwed this up. I thought you had something to tell me. You go first.”
She looks as though she’s about to argue, then, thinking better of it, blurts out, “I’m pregnant.”
The revelation shocks me.
I can’t do anything but look at her wide-eyed.
“Really?” I choke out.
She nods.
“I did the home test and then yesterday I went to the doctor to confirm.”
I reach over and tentatively give her tummy a couple of light pats with my fingertips.
“Hello, baby,” I say.
She laughs at me.
“I’m not showing yet, so you can’t feel anything there.”
“So…are you happy about this new development? Or no?”
I still have a hard time reading Summer sometimes. I’ve learned it’s better to come right out and ask her if I’m feeling confused.
I’m still not sure what to make of her words myself.
“We’re having a baby,” I repeat to myself. “You and I are having a baby. We’re going to be parents.”
“Turning my words around every which way isn’t going to change things,” she says with a laugh. “I’m regretting telling you this while high up on a Ferris Wheel. You might jump.”
The shock is gradually beginning to wear off.
“Let me get this straight,” I say, grasping both her hands and peering into her face, “we’re going to have a baby?”
She grins and nods at me.
“Yes!” I yell into the night, spreading my arms and bellowing out as loud as my lungs will let me. “Vegas baby! I mean, listen up, Vegas! We’re having a baby!”
Summer presses a finger to my lips.
“Shush, Vegas might be trying to sleep.”
As I quiet down, she squeezes my hand.
“What were you going to tell me?”
“Nothing,” I say casually, taking her other hand in mine, “Just that you made me the happiest man in the world. That you’re the best girlfriend a guy could ask for. And that I love you more than anything.”
“I love you too,” she says, leaning her head contently on my shoulder.
“I’m not finished,” I say.
“It sounded like you were. Did I upstage you with my pregnancy news?” she asks with a laugh. “Let’s face it, that is pretty hard to beat.”
“True,” I say, “though I would like to try.” I take a deep breath. “To go along with you being the best girlfriend alive and making me the happiest man in the world, I was wondering if…”
I search her expectant eyes.
Suddenly, the enormity of what I’m about to do hits me.
“I was wondering if you would do me the greatest honor of marrying me and being the mother of my children?” I choke out.
I say the words so quickly, that it takes a minute for them to register on Summer’s face. When they do, her face bursts into the most magnificent smile I’ve ever seen.
“What you’re saying is,” she says, “we’re having a baby and we’re getting married?”
I pull her close to me and give her a big kiss on the lips.
“Yes, it certainly looks like we are. From now on, it’s going to be the three of us…you, me and Johnny ‘Baby Boy’ Jones.”
“How do you know the baby is a boy?” Summer asks, lifting her head from her shoulder to look at me.
I chuckle and reach over to place my hand on her tummy again. This time, I keep it there.
“A Daddy knows these things.”
***
Want to meet Shane Davis, Johnny’s driver friend who was badly burned in a car crash? If so, keep reading and fall in love with Shane in “Skin Deep,” written by the co-writer of Burning Rubber, and author friend, Dez Burke.