“How I do look?”

Rach squinted at me across the pile of clothes on her bed. “You look like a baby whale.”

I felt my body break out in a fine sweat. “You’re not supposed to say that to a pregnant woman!”

I was trying on different outfits of Rach’s, unwilling to subject myself to the maternity department as of yet. Denton and I were going out on a date, but he’d told me to dress up this time. “Wear something comfortable but nice,” he’d said to me over the phone.

Unfortunately, my belly no longer fit into most of my “nice” clothes.

“Where’s he taking you?” Rach asked, rummaging through her closet.

“No idea. He just acted all mysterious.”

“Maybe he wants to go dancing.”

“Unlikely. It’s probably a charity event or something similar.” When she handed me a loose black dress, I hurriedly undressed to slip it on. “How’s this? And please don’t say I look like a mortician.”

Rach smiled with approval. “It’s understated, but elegant. I think it’s perfect.”

She helped me with my makeup and hair, and in a half hour, I was good to go. To my surprise, however, it wasn’t Denton who came to pick me up at six, but Ernest’s chauffeur.

“Mrs. North, please put this on.” He held up a silk blindfold.

I shook my head. “No way. I didn’t spent the last hour trying on different outfits just so you could dump my lifeless body in the Hudson River.”

He bit his lip, unsuccessfully hiding a smirk. “These are my orders, I’m afraid. Please, Mrs. North, I’m just trying to do my job here.”

“Fine,” I grumbled, and allowed him to cover my eyes only after I was safely bundled into the car.

As we drove through the streets, I peppered him with questions. “Where are we going?”

“It’s a secret, Mrs. North.”

“Stop calling me that. I’d prefer it if you called me Tiffany.”

“Very well.”

“Are we going to the Met for a premiere? Or some charity event?”

“Nothing like that. And please stop tugging on the blindfold.”

“I’m not!”

He sighed impatiently. “I can see you in the rearview mirror.”

Man, he was one tough cookie. “I’m guessing Ernest knows what the surprise is?”

“Of course. He knows everything.”

That only made my curiosity grow. What was the big deal? And why all the secrecy?

Annoyed, I slumped into the seat and counted the seconds that crawled by.

I must have fallen asleep sometime during the ride because I awoke to the chauffeur shaking my shoulder.

“We’re here.”

“Is that so? And where is ‘here?’” I said in a snippy tone.

“You’ll find out soon enough. Now please, Tiffany, if you could just step out…”

“Okay, okay.” With his help, I managed to get out of the car. “You’d better hope this blindfold hasn’t smeared my eye makeup. I don’t think Denton will appreciate it when he slips off the blindfold and sees a pair of angry panda eyes staring back at him.”

I couldn’t be sure, but I thought I heard him snortling under his breath.

It was windy and cold out in the open, so it was with great relief that we entered some sort of building. The ding of an elevator sounded in my ears. We were going up, it seemed. I poked at the chauffeur’s ribs to get his attention.

“I don’t like this. Take me back down,” I demanded like a spoiled brat.

“That’s not possible.”

“This feels dangerous and a little irresponsible. Didn’t your mother tell you you’re not supposed to stress out a pregnant woman?”

“This is hardly a stressful situation, Tiffany.” The elevator dinged again. “Ah! We’re finally here. Thank god,” he added under his breath.

I chose to be the better person and ignore that last remark.

After he pulled me out of the elevator, the chauffeur left me standing on some windy part of the floor.

“Leave it,” he ordered when I yanked at the blindfold. “Mr. North will be here shortly.”

This evening no longer felt like a surprise, but more of an ordeal. Suddenly emotional, I burst into loud sobs, burying my blindfolded face in my hands.

The chauffeur grew alarmed. “Now, now, Tiffany, there’s no need to cry. And uh… if you keep crying like that, you will end up with Alice Cooper eyes.”

I lifted my head, sniffling. “Who’s that?”

“A famous rocker from my generation.” He paused, then said with relief, “Here comes Mr. North. Now dry your tears, Tiffany, before he sees them.”

Doing as I was told, I quickly pressed the blindfold into the corners of my eyes.

“Thank you, Nigel,” Denton said, his voice drawing near. “I hope she wasn’t too much trouble.”

“On the contrary, Mr. North. She was an absolute delight,” Nigel lied through his teeth. “Have a lovely evening.” He quickly excused himself, probably to get away from me.

“I hate you,” I grumbled as Denton pulled me in for a comforting hug. “Can I take the blindfold off now?”

“Sure. Let me help you with that.” He untied the knot at the back. When the blindfold slipped down my face, I was treated to the beautiful sight of Denton’s wide smile.

And he was wearing a tuxedo.

“Look around,” he said, and I immediately obeyed.

“This is an observation deck.” I shook my head, still not understanding. “Wait… are we on the Empire State Building?”

Denton dropped to one knee. “We are.” He opened a small red box and held it up for me to see. “Tiffany North, will you marry me? For real this time?” His green eyes filled with playfulness. “I promise to give you the world.”

“Oh, Denton!” I slapped his shoulder, then laughed as he slipped the huge diamond ring on my finger.

Our imaginary proposal had become real. This was really happening.

“You haven’t given me an answer yet,” he said, rising to gather me in his arms.

“Yes. My answer’s a definite yes.”

“You’re my entire world now.” His expression grew serious. “There’ll be times when I might frustrate you or even make you a little angry, but I’m going to do my best to be there for you always. I love you, Tiffany.”

I threw my arms around his neck, sobbing again. “And I love you.”

We stayed like that for a while, just holding each other.

Later, I pulled back a bit to stare at the diamond sparkling on my finger. “I already have a beautiful ring at home, though, the one you gave me when—”

“That ring has all the wrong reasons attached to it. I want us to have a fresh start, and that begins with a new engagement ring.”

His words made a lot of sense.

“Now, about our wedding…” Denton raised a brow when I gawked at him. “Oh, we’re having a wedding to celebrate our renewed vows. Did I forget to mention that? Besides, your mother should be there this time to bear witness. My parents are quite eager to meet her.”

As happy as I was, it was too much all at once. “I… I think I need to sit down.”

“Actually, I’ve made dinner reservations at Per Se.” Denton checked his watch. “In fact, we should be on our way. Nigel’s waiting for us downstairs.”

We took the elevator down, Denton’s arm wrapped tightly around me. I glanced up to stare at my husband’s face. “Thank you for taking me home when I bumped into you at the nightclub. You kept my drunk ass safe that night.”

He pressed a soft kiss on the tip of my nose. “And thank you for choosing me out of all the pretentious jerks sitting at the bar.”

“You weren’t a pretentious jerk. Although you were definitely the hottest guy there.”

Nigel was waiting beside the car when we stepped outside. He nodded at me, as if to say, congratulations.

I mouthed a silent thank you before settling in the back with Denton.

“Hungry?” Denton placed his hand over my belly.

“Starved. And I speak for the both of us.” I glanced down at his protective hand over the baby bump.

“We’d better hurry then.” He raised his head. “Let’s go, Nigel.”

“Right away, Mr. North.”

As the luxury car drove seamlessly down the street, I kept my gaze on Denton. Through sheer dumb luck or fate, I had managed to land the most amazing husband.

I truly was the luckiest woman in the world.

* * *

Like before, our wedding took place at the Hamptons home. However, there were a few differences.

We only invited immediate family and a few close friends.

I wore a simple white dress.

And I was massively pregnant.

Mom and Gloria had to practically roll me down the aisle.

Denton and I promised to love and cherish one another in sickness and in health before our loved ones. And when we sealed our vows with a passionate kiss, we made a new contract.

To love each other.

To take care of each other.

To be each other’s best friend.

Spring was upon us, bringing with it new life and hope for the coming days. We danced and ate beneath a white tent, some of our guests growing alarmingly drunk.

Rach and Dylan attracted a fair amount of attention because they made such a pretty couple. I had to admit, she was right—he was pretty cute with those broad shoulders and puppy dog brown eyes. I just hoped he did right by her.

On the other side of the tent, Mom and Ernest were eating lobster and having a heated discussion. Probably about business, as usual. When they caught me looking at them, they both sent me a cheery wave.

“Save me a dance, young Tiffany!” he boomed before returning to their talk. He looked quite healthy and happy today.

Silently, I offered up a prayer that he would not only live to see his great-grandchild, but have many years to spend with him or her. I couldn’t bear the thought of losing Ernest.

“What are you thinking?” Denton whispered in my ear as we slow danced, although it was rather awkward because of the baby between us.

“Everyone looks so happy,” I noted, smiling. “And I was just thinking about Ernest.”

Denton nodded, glancing at his grandfather. “He beat the odds and lived far longer than his doctors expected. But we’ll need to keep a close eye on him. He doesn’t say it, but I can tell he’s been feeling unwell lately.” When Denton sensed my gloomy mood, he quickly grinned. “But let’s focus on the positive today. I’ve been thinking about our honeymoon. Obviously, we’ll have to go after the baby’s born, but how does a European trip sound?”

I glanced at Ernest again. “Actually, I’d like to spend as much time with Ernest as I can. We have the rest of our lives to travel and enjoy life, you know.”

Denton’s gaze softened. “Thank you, Tiffany.”

I tilted my head, puzzled. “For what?”

“For being so wonderful.” He leaned down to press a lingering kiss on my lips.

A short while later, I had to sit down because of pains in my lower back. As I ate two slices of wedding cake—okay, it was actually three—and watched my family and friends milling around, I realized that everyone I loved and cherished was right here with me.

Thank you. I glanced at each and every one of them. Thank you for being in my life.

I honestly could not have asked for a more perfect day.