Six months later, I knew the time was right. Shelley and the twins had spent most of their days at our Pebble Beach house, and many, if not most, of their nights. Shelley had blossomed into the sort of woman who left me breathless, not only with her beauty, but with her fierce compassion as a mother. Her art filled the downstairs, breathing life into the mansion, and the kids had left their mark in nearly every room.

I had an intricate plan to make it permanent, and I was just waiting for my chance to make it a reality.

I got my chance one Thursday afternoon, after Shelley had left the twins with me to take her wares to the craft fair. I sat down on the floor of the playroom with Vincent and Frida, stacking blocks with them.

“All right, kids. Mommy is going to be back around five o’clock. Before she gets back, I have a few questions for you.”

They looked at me, Vincent with that fierce curiosity, Frida with that ageless seriousness.

“First question: do you like it here?”

“Big stairs!” Vincent said, nodding emphatically.

“I like it,” Frida said. “I like toys, and pool, and shiny, and echo! Echo! Echo!”

I laughed, pleased at her rapidly growing vocabulary as much as her answer.

“Okay, second question: do you like it when Mommy and Daddy are together?”

“No kissy,” Vincent said, making a face.

“Mommy smiles,” Frida said thoughtfully. She paused for a moment, then nodded. “I like it.”

“Oh,” Vincent said. He made another face, then sighed. “Like smiles.”

“All right, last question: would you like to see Mommy and Daddy get married?”

Frida gasped and her eyes lit up. Standing, she flung her arms out to either side and began to sing an adorable version of the wedding song from her favorite movie.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” I laughed. “Vincent, would you like Mommy and Daddy to get married? We’ll make promises to each other and have a big party—”

“Cake?” he asked, his eyes focusing sharply on my face.

“The biggest cake you’ve ever seen.”

“Cake!”

“Awesome! Then I need your help, both of you. Let’s load these blocks up in the wheelbarrow; I have an idea.”

Frida was still singing her song as we carted all of their letter blocks out to the foyer. Vincent dumped the blue plastic wheelbarrow with a gleeful cackle, and Frida gasped.

“Big mess! Big, big mess!”

“It’s okay, Frida,” I chuckled. “Can you help me find letters? How about an ‘M’?”

Frida fumbled through the blocks, searching for the letter. She handed me an N, and Vincent gave me a B.

“Close, but let’s try again. Do you remember what ‘M’ looks like?”

One by one, we lined the letters up in the perfect order. Vincent was uncharacteristically careful not to knock any out of place; I could see the promise of cake prompting him to move cautiously. We finished just in time, placing the last letter just as Shelley pulled into the driveway.

“All right kids, come over here so Mommy can see,” I told them.

I was vibrating with excitement, and sick with anxiety. If she said no…but she wouldn’t. I knew she wouldn’t. At least I hoped she wouldn’t…

My palms began to sweat. The certainty I had felt all day had faded, and I second-guessed every feeling and instinct which had prompted me to take this step in the first place. As if feeling my anxiety, Frida slid her little hand into mine and smiled up at me.

“Honeys, I’m home!” Shelley sang as she opened the door. “Oh, wow! What happened here?”

“We were practicing finding letters,” I told her with a grin. “And we learned how to spell some new words.”

“Read, Mommy!” Frida squealed, bouncing on her toes.

“Okay, okay,” Shelley laughed. “Mommy…will…you…marry…Daddy. Oh my gosh!”

Shelley threw her hands over her face, dropping her armful of printed clothes as her eyes filled with tears. Frida began spinning and singing the wedding song again, and Shelley laughed through the tears.

“Cake!” Vincent squealed.

“I see where your priorities are,” Shelley laughed as she hugged Vincent. “You two helped with this?”

“Yes! Marry Daddy, Mommy! Be princess!” Frida twirled again, her eyes glittering.

I pulled the ring from my pocket, where it had been nestled for the last month while I waited for the perfect time. I lowered myself to one knee, holding it out to her, and was immediately tackled from both sides by the kids. Vincent climbed up onto my shoulders, while Frida wriggled through my arms to perch on my knee.

“I…we,” I corrected with a laugh. “Would be utterly lost without you, Shelley. You’re everything to me. My best friend, the mother of my children, the most brilliant artist I’ve ever met. Would you do me the great honor and—Vincent, sit still, you’re going to fall—um, where was I?”

“You were about to get around to asking me,” she said with a beaming smile.

“Right! Would you make me a very lucky man and marry the heck out of me?”

She sobbed a laugh and held out her finger for the ring. I slid it on a bit awkwardly, trying to avoid tipping either child onto the floor. It glittered like a summer sea on her finger, reflecting in the tears on her face. As soon as it was on, she fell to her knees and threw her arms around me, encircling both twins in the embrace.

“Of course I will, Miles,” she said through her sniffles. “Of course I will.”