Six Months Later

I married Lilah in a private ceremony on a beach in Hawaii three months ago. Only our parents and closest friends attended. When I first saw her walking toward me to say the words that would make her mine forever, I swear my heart skipped a beat. I’d never seen anything so breathtaking in my life. Her smile grew with each step closer and when she stopped in front of me there were tears in both of our eyes.

Every moment of our ceremony is permanently etched in my mind like thousands of individual snapshots. The flowers in her hair. A long, flowing white sundress. Elegant fingers holding a colorful bouquet of hibiscus and plumeria. Blonde tresses stirring in the breeze, gently caressing her cheeks. The warm, squishy sand under my bare feet. The rapid pounding of my heart as we exchanged our vows. Slipping the platinum and diamond band on her finger. Lilah pushing the black titanium band on mine. Bowing my head for prayer and seeing her pink toes curled into the sand. Kissing the bride for the first time. Supple lips meeting mine. Tongues stroking. Arms embracing. Bodies pressed together. Throats clearing to break us apart. Laughter followed by congratulations from all our loved ones.

Every day together has been better than the last. I still can’t believe she’s mine. Fortune has smiled down on me in so many ways.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Lilah asks, walking into our home office with flushed cheeks and an impish expression on her face.

“Come here.” I crook my finger and pat my thigh. She steps toward me, a graceful sway in her hips, mouth curved into a delicate smile. Sinking down onto my lap with a sigh, she runs her fingers through my hair, staring lovingly at me. My chest squeezes with pressure. I love her so much sometimes I don’t know how my heart can contain it all. “I’ve been thinking about us and contemplating life.”

“Uh oh,” she jests.

My fingers stroke up and down her back, tracing over her spine. She shivers from my touch, stirring the primal sense of satisfaction within me. I fight my natural urge to lie her down on my desk and take her hard and fast. Right now, I want her to hear the words I need to say.

“I’m the luckiest bastard in the world. My job is the one I always dreamed of doing and allows us to be financially sound. And best of all, I get to spend the rest of my days loving my dream woman and growing old side by side through whatever life has in store for us. What could be better than that?”

She stares at me with an impish grin on her face before leaning her forehead against mine. “I’m pregnant.”

My hands cup her cheeks, raising her head from mine. I need to see her clear green gaze right now. “You’re pregnant? You’re really pregnant?” Awe mixed with surprise has my voice croaking the words out.

“I’m really, really, really pregnant. Counting back almost three months, I think.” She smiles, her eyes shining with tears. “I took a test. Actually, I took three, just to be sure.” She rubs her nose against mine. “With all the travelling and work, I didn’t realize it until now.”

My arms pull her in, holding her tight to my chest. I may never let her go.

“Jesse, I can’t breathe.” She pokes my side and my embrace immediately loosens, but I’m not releasing her anytime soon.

“You just made me the happiest man in the world.”

“I thought you already were?”

“I was. I am. I have been since the day I first kissed your lips.” My nose nuzzles the soft cloud of her hair, breathing in her fruity scent. “It only took two hundred ninety-one rejections before you said yes. I knew then I’d never let you go. And this,” my hand rests on her flat stomach, “our baby is a fucking miracle. He or she is the best gift of all.”

There’s so much to teach our child. This will change things for us. Lilah will need more rest and to do less travelling.

“What’s going on? I can see you worrying?” she questions.

“Just thinking about all I have to teach our little Gunn. How early is too early to start learning wrestling moves?”

Lilah shakes her head and removes her phone from her pocket. She snaps a picture of my hand on her stomach. I watch as she chews on her bottom lip, fingers flying over the screen. Finished typing, she holds the phone up, a smile stretching across her captivating face. Grinning, I click ‘tweet’, thinking of the social media frenzy this will cause.

@TheJesseGunn Look out world, here I come #GunnInTheOven

The end