When Mom found out about my non-divorce situation, she shouted in relief and gave me a hug. “It’s the right thing to do,” she said once I explained that I’d be moving back into the penthouse. “The best decision you’ve made. You and Denton belong together.”

“Oh, really?” I raised a brow. “Then why were you still in touch with Andy and taking calls from him behind my back?”

“Because my first priority is my pregnant daughter’s future happiness and stability,” Mom retorted. “One man brought up divorce, and another man brought up marriage. It only made sense that I would choose the latter.”

“Well, Denton’s my husband, so you should tell Andy—very nicely, I might add—to go find some other gullible woman to help fix his wounded pride.”

“Tiffany…” Mom warned.

“Okay, okay. I’ll try to be a little nicer.”

That afternoon, I went to visit Ernest at the Hamptons. Now that Gloria knew Denton and I were not divorced, she was all smiles and hugs again.

“It’s so good to see you, Tiffany.” She glanced appreciatively at my growing belly. “How have you been?”

“Tired,” I said truthfully. “And constantly eating. Is Ernest taking his nap?”

“He’s in the study reading. Why don’t you go in now?”

Nodding, I headed straight for the study, eager to see him.

After an abrupt knock, I went inside and stood there with hands on my hips. “You, sir, are a sly and crafty man. Why didn’t you tell me that Denton never processed those divorce papers?”

He glanced up from his leather-bound tome. “Why should I? This was your mess. I was merely the observer watching the train wreck that was you and my bullheaded grandson.”

Smiling, I sat down on the couch. “He told me he loved me, in his own way. So you got your wish.”

“My wish?”

“Yes! Don’t you remember what you said to me? You wanted to see Denton fall in love with someone.”

Ernest waved his hand. “Pfft. That’s not news to me. I already knew that.”

“Oh.”

He pushed his tome back into the shelf and wheeled toward me. “I’ve been thinking about baby names. If it’s a boy, you should name him Ernest North the Second. And if it’s a girl, I want you to name her after my late mother—Lorraine North. Lori for short.”

“Okay.”

He looked startled at my quick response, as if he’d been expecting some pushback from me. “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. Actually, I’d prefer it that way. Besides, isn’t that the norm in some cultures? That the patriarch of the tribe names the newborn?”

Ernest looked terribly pleased with my decision. “Are you staying for dinner? I’ve been told the chef is preparing salmon poached in a lovely court bouillon.”

I was already salivating. “Wild horses couldn’t keep me away.”

Dinner that evening was a North family affair—Ernest sat at his usual spot at the end of the table, Patrick and Gloria to his left, and Denton and I to his right. The food was so delicious that I had seconds and thirds. For a brief moment, I wondered if Denton might feel embarrassed—I was behaving like a glutton, after all. But a quick glance proved the opposite—he looked at me with such tenderness that I recalled something Ernest had said months ago.

He shows all the signs—he fawns over you, talks about you all the time, actually wants to spend more time with you, and smiles more whenever you’re around. If that isn’t a man in love, then I don’t know what the heck it is.

Denton had never needed to say “I love you” because I would have seen it if I’d really taken the time to look. He was a man who showed his love. Words were not enough.

“Is something wrong with the food? Are you crying?” Denton leaned closer, worried.

“No, the food’s fine. It’s incredible, actually. I just… I think there’s an eyelash in my eye.”

“Let me take a look.”

“It’s okay. I got it out.” Giving him a grateful smile, I returned to my salmon.

The rest of dinner was filled with serious conversation about where the baby would attend preschool. Naturally, it was Gloria who led the discussion.

“Some of the waiting lists are unbelievable,” she said, clearly annoyed. “But a North only goes to the best schools on the East Coast, so we’ll start the applications tomorrow.”

I choked on my salmon. “Even though the baby isn’t born yet?”

Denton leaned in again and whispered, “Let her do it. It’ll keep her busy and out of your hair for a while.”

That was an excellent point.

After dessert and promises to drop by again soon, Denton and I drove to the penthouse, tired but content. Because my growing belly had been causing me some back pain, he drew a warm bath for us. I groaned softly as I settled in between his strong legs.

“And my belly’s not even that big yet.” I sighed, leaning back on his broad chest. “I’ll probably be in bed all day when I enter my seventh month.”

“I’ll give you a massage every night to ease some of the pain.”

“Why are you so good to me?” I hummed with pleasure.

He let out a quiet laugh. “Just a few weeks ago, you were probably stabbing tiny pins into a voodoo doll with my name on it.”

“Not me. But Andy might have.”

Mom must have nicely told him to back off, because I hadn’t heard from him in a while. I hoped she’d told him about my still-married status. It might’ve finally given him the incentive to give up on me and go find someone else, someone who actually returned his feelings.

Denton continued massaging my shoulders and back. “Gramps told me you gave him the okay on naming the baby.”

“Yes.” I groaned as he hit a particularly sore spot. “You don’t mind, do you? Because when I saw how happy that made him, I knew it was the right decision.”

“Mind? Not at all. If anything, I should be thanking you for caring about Gramps so much.” He chuckled. “Gramps hated all of my past girlfriends. Never wanted anything to do with them.”

My fingers were starting to prune. “My mom’s the opposite. She likes all my exes.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed,” Denton grumbled.

We climbed out of the tub and got ready for bed. As he spooned me from behind, I had a sudden thought. Denton was no longer my fake husband. This was my life.

I had my own family and a baby on the way.

It was a lot to process, and I’d never in a million years believed I would be married and settled in my early twenties, but this was my reality now.

I grinned in the dark and closed my eyes. It was the best reality I could have ever hoped for.