Prosecco and Peonies

by SJ McCoy

  She held her arms open to him, and he smiled and stepped inside them, resting his head on her shoulder.

  “I love you, Molly. That’s all that matters.”

  “And I love you. I’ve only ever loved you, and I think you believe that now.”

  “I do. I want us to spend the rest of our lives loving each other and our baby—and all the little brothers and sisters who come along.”

  She nodded. She did, too, and she wanted them to be married. Maybe she was in too much of a hurry. But after all these years—and now that she was expecting, how could it be too soon?

  She let go of him as he turned back to attend to the pans on the stove top. Surely he’d ask her soon?

  Chapter Eighteen

  On Saturday morning, Marcos sat out on the patio while Molly spent her time in the bathroom. He’d been reading about morning sickness, and from what he’d learned, he was hoping that it wouldn’t last too much longer. He felt bad for her. He wished he could take it away or go through it for her. But, like pretty much everything to do with having a baby, it was all on Molly. All he could do was support her, be there for her, and try to make things easier for her. He needed her to know that he was in this with her. He’d be by her side every step of the way—every day for the rest of their lives, not just for this baby, but for the next, and the next, if he got his way.

  He turned the ring box over in his pocket. He’d planned to ask her last night, but she’d fallen asleep. He’d made her dinner, and they’d eaten out here on the patio. They’d talked and laughed, and he’d drunk prosecco—she wouldn’t be sharing any with him for a while. She’d taught him which plants were which around the flower beds. She loved them all, the pretty white ones and the pink ones with hundreds of tiny flowers. There was a big green plant in the center. It was more like a bush with dark green waxy leaves. He hadn’t seen flowers on it since he’d been here. She’d told him that was a peony and they only bloomed for about two weeks. He’d suggested that she should use the prime space for something else that would bloom for longer, but she’d laughed and told him that the best things in life were worth waiting for. Even if they didn’t last as long as you’d like, you wouldn’t want to replace them with something else.

  He blew out a sigh. She’d waited for him all this time. He wanted to do everything he could to make her happy for the rest of her days—to make up for all the time they’d lost.

  She looked bright and breezy when she came out to join him. He was amazed at how quickly the sickness passed each day.

  “What do you want to do?” she asked.

  “Whatever you like. We can hang out here, if you want. Take it easy.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t want. For me, not being at work is taking it easy, but sitting around here is no fun.” She smiled. “Have you heard anything from Ken? Do you think we’d be able to go and look around at the Hardy place?”

  “Sure. I’ll give him a call. I don’t see why not.”

  An hour later, they were pulling up outside the gate. Marcos rolled down the window and tapped the code into the keypad.

  “It’s awesome that they don’t mind us coming out here,” said Molly.

  “The place has stood empty for a while. There’s no reason they should. If we do any damage, we’ll be responsible.”

  She looked at him warily, making him laugh.

  “We’re not going to do any damage, but Ken had to make me aware of the legalities.”

  He brought the car to a halt on the circular driveway in front of the grand entrance.

  “Do you want to walk the vines?”

  He smiled. She knew how much walking the vines meant to him. It was a part of his being. It was how he’d always gotten right with himself and the world, and she knew it would be a part of how he bonded with this place. “I can do that any time. I thought you wanted to look at the house.”

  “I do, but I’d like to walk the vines with you first. They’re going to be an important part of your life going forward. I’d like to get to know them.”

  He had to smile at that. He didn’t think of it as spending time with the vines themselves, just as getting to know the land and what grew there. It was a way of staying grounded and keeping an eye on how things were going. It was typical of Molly that she thought of it as getting to know the vines.

  She shrugged. “I know you think I’m nuts, and that’s okay. Those vines are going to be part of our family.”

  He laughed and got out of the car, going around to open her door and help her out.

  She made a face at him. “I’m still capable of getting in and out of the car by myself. Maybe in a few months when I’m huge, I’ll need your help.”

  He took her arm and steered her past the house. “You’re going to have to give me some slack. I can’t help it. I want to take care of you.”

  “Aww.” She rested her head against his shoulder. “In that case, thank you.”

  ~ ~ ~

  After their tour of the vines, Marcos let them in the house. Molly wandered around. It was huge! She loved the place, but she couldn’t see herself ever living there. Just the thought of having to clean it made her feel exhausted.

  Marcos went to her and slung his arm around her shoulders. “What do you think we should do with the place?”

  “Probably put it on the rental market.”

  He nodded. “Would you want to help me decorate it first?”

  She grinned. She loved that idea. “I would! Doing my little house was wonderful. I could have so much fun doing this place.”

  He smiled. “Then let’s do it. It can be our project.”

  She liked the sound of that. It’d be fun for the two of them to work together. “Did you go off the idea of using it as a wedding venue?”

  He looked down into her eyes and smiled. “Not entirely.”

  Her heart started to race. “What does that mean?”

  “Do you still like the idea of getting married here?”

  She nodded. She wanted to say she’d love the idea—if anyone ever asked her to get married—but she bit her tongue. For whatever reason, he wanted to take his time. It wouldn’t be the same if he asked because she’d told him to hurry up about it. Whenever it was would be fine by her. Her hand strayed down to cover her stomach. It’d have to be.

  He noticed her hand and covered it with his own. “I can’t wait to tell everyone.”

  She nodded. She couldn’t either.

  He blew out a big sigh and took hold of her hand. “Come outside with me?”

  She followed him out onto the terrace. The view was stunning. She stood there for a few moments taking it all in. “It’s so beautiful.”

  He nodded. “It is. This is my favorite part of the house.” He turned and swung his arm out over the view of the valley. “It feels as though that’s our future, laid out before us. It’s big and it’s beautiful, and we’re going to make the very best of it and be happy.”

  She smiled and rested her head against his shoulder. “We will. It might have taken us a while to get here, but we made it.”

  “Molly.”

  She caught her breath as he took hold of her hand and went down on one knee before her. “I’ve tried to dream up the right moment, to come up with some special and original way to do this. I can’t think of anything more special than this, in front of that beautiful view, on the precipice of our new life. I love you with all my heart and soul. I messed up when we were kids, and I’ve paid the price for all the years we were apart. I don’t ever want to spend another day without you by my side. Will you marry me? Say you’ll be my wife, that we’ll have a happy family and grow old together.”

  Tears streamed down her face. Just moments earlier she’d wanted to tell him how impatient she was for this. She was so glad she’d waited and let him do it in his own time. He was ready, too, and now she knew he was asking because he couldn’t wait—not because she’d told him that she couldn’t. She nodded
happily. “Of course, I’ll marry you, Marcos. It’s all I’ve wanted.”

  He pulled a box from his pocket and opened it up to show her a beautiful ring that was set with three diamonds. He slid it onto her finger and stood up to take her in his arms. She looped her arms up around his neck and kissed him back. She was his—he was hers, and from this day on, he always would be. It’d be the two of them and their baby. She couldn’t wait to start their new life together.

  When they finally came up for air, she held her hand out to admire her ring. “I love it, Marcos. It’s so beautiful.”

  He nodded happily, looking very proud of himself. “Do you like the three stones?”

  She chuckled. “Of course I do! I would have been happy with just one, but three is even better.”

  He smiled. “Do you know what they stand for?”

  She cocked her head to one side. She hadn’t even considered that they might stand for anything. “You, me, and the baby?”

  He smiled. “I hadn’t thought of that, but I like it. We can have more stones added when we have more children.”

  She laughed. “I’ll have to get older and grow fatter fingers first if you want to fit any more stones on there. They’re huge.”

  “I wanted them to be. When I talked to Laura—”

  “You had Laura make this?”

  “I did. She’s the best.”

  “She is.” It made Molly happy, not just that Laura had made it, but that he’d evidently been thinking about this and preparing to ask her for some time.

  “She told me all about the different styles of engagement rings and what they all mean. The solitaire is for one true love. I liked that, but we’re going to have another love in our life very soon.”

  She put her hand on her stomach and smiled—it was true.

  “And two stones are for two hearts becoming one, but again, there’ll be three of us soon.”

  She smiled. “But three stones aren’t for you and me and baby makes three?”

  He chuckled. “They can be, they will be for us. But traditionally, the three stones represent past, present, and future. The center stone is the biggest because it represents the present. We have our past, we have a wonderful future that lies ahead of us, but the most important moment is and always will be, right here and now, the present that we share.”

  “Aww, that’s so beautiful, Marcos.”

  He held his arms open to her, and she stepped inside them and rested her head against his chest. “It’s all going to be okay, isn’t it? We got there in the end.”

  “We did. I’ll always regret the years that we lost, but I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make up for it.”

  Molly touched the center stone of her ring. “There’s no need. All that matters is here and now. We need to let the past lie and live every day for its own sake.”

  Marcos smiled. “That’s exactly what your dad said.”

  “You’ve spoken to him?”

  “I went to see him Thursday.”

  “Oh, wow! That was sneaky! You said you were spending the day with Cam.”

  He laughed. “Not sneaky. I did spend the day with Cam. At least, I flew out to Phoenix with him. I needed to ask for your dad’s blessing, and I didn’t want to do it over the phone.”

  Molly smiled. “And he was good with it?”

  “He was. He grilled me at first—understandably. He didn’t want to see you hurt again, but he knew you still loved me, and he could see that I still love you.”

  “He was angry at you back then, but he always liked you. I think he always hoped you’d come back someday, just like I did.”

  “How do you think he’ll feel about the baby?”

  “I think he’ll be over the moon. He wants grandbabies, and I think he’d pretty much given up hope of ever having any.”

  “He won’t mind that it’s worked out this way?”

  She shook her head. “No. He’s not a stickler for tradition on that sort of thing. He might not like it if we never planned to get married, but when we tell him the news that we are—and that we’ll be starting our family very soon afterward, I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.”

  “How soon do you want to get married? Or would you rather wait until after the baby arrives?”

  “No! I don’t want to wait. I want to be married first.” She sucked in a deep breath. “But that either means a big rush, or me walking down the aisle with a big baby bump.”

  “Which would you rather do?”

  She smiled. She had a feeling he knew her answer.

  Epilogue

  Three weeks later

  Marcos stood beside his brother under the pergola. Everything was perfect—he’d made damned sure of it. Every single little detail. He’d checked and double checked. He wanted everything to be perfect for Molly.

  Antonio grinned at him. “I was right.”

  Marcos had to laugh. “Of course you were, you always are—but what are you talking about?”

  “Less than a year ago, you were still in Sicily. You asked me if she was single and if I thought it could ever work. I told you yes and yes. And today, here we are.”

  Marcos grinned. “I don’t always like when you’re right, but in this case, I’ll make an exception.”

  “I’m happy for you, brother.”

  “Thank you. I’m happy for me, too.”

  “But you’re seriously going to live at Molly’s and not move over here?”

  Marcos chuckled. “The jury is still out on that. We’ve spent a lot of time over here the last few weeks, getting everything ready for today. She’s falling in love with the place, but I keep reminding her that she loves her house.”

  “You don’t want to move here?”

  “I’d love to. If it’ll make her happy. We have all the time in the world. We can move when we’re ready or never.”

  Antonio smiled. “You might have all the time in the world to decide where you want to live, but you didn’t have so long to get married.”

  “She wanted to do it before she got big. Every girl wants to look beautiful in her wedding dress.”

  “She’ll look even more beautiful when she’s big and blooming.”

  Marcos chuckled. “I told her that too, but she didn’t agree. And you? You’re just broody. You need to talk with Mary Ellen and tell her your biological clock is ticking.”

  Antonio laughed. “I do, every day. Oh. Wow. Look.”

  Marcos followed his brother’s gaze to where Chelsea had just stepped out onto the terrace. He could see Molly and her dad through the window, and he couldn’t wait for her to come out.

  When she did, she took his breath away. She looked stunning. Her dress was perfect. It was all gathered under her breasts—which drew his eyes to them and kept them there for a good few moments. When he came back to his senses, he realized that the dress flowed out from there and hid her baby bump. It wasn’t big yet, but it was noticeable, and she hadn’t wanted it to be. The dress was perfect.

  ~ ~ ~

  The music struck up, and Molly looked at her dad as Chelsea set out up the aisle between the rows of chairs on the terrace. “You weren’t kidding about the view from here, were you, Moll?”

  She shook her head. Seeing Marcos standing up there with Antonio—two very handsome men framed against the backdrop of that gorgeous view made her feel as though she was in a fairy tale. The heroine wasn’t usually knocked up when she married her charming prince, but hers was a modern-day fairy tale, and she wouldn’t change a thing.

  “Are you ready?”

  She nodded. She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to get any words out, even when she was up at the front with Marcos. She wasn’t nervous. She was bursting with happiness. The day she’d thought would never arrive was finally here.

  She smiled and nodded at her friends as she passed. Gene and Rita—they’d been the first to know about the baby. Mary Ellen and Grant beamed at her as she passed. Smoke
and Laura sat with Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton. Laura had made the most beautiful matching pair of wedding bands to go with her gorgeous engagement ring.

  Sofia and John sat at the front. Sofia dabbed at her eyes and John blew her a kiss. Tears started to roll down her cheeks. She was so happy to become a part of their family. They were thrilled that she finally would—and that she’d be making them grandparents very soon.

  She looked up at Marcos, and her heart melted. He was so handsome. His dark hair and olive skin so similar to Antonio’s, and yet so different. Antonio was good-looking, but in her opinion, Marcos was in a league all of his own.

  He smiled when they reached the front, and her dad kissed her cheek. He leaned forward to shake hands with Marcos, but Marcos pulled him in for a hug, which just made more happy tears roll down Molly’s cheeks.

  The ceremony was beautiful, at least that’s what people told her afterward. It all went by in a blur. She repeated words, slid a ring on Marcos’ finger, he slid one onto hers, and it was done. The officiant announced that they were man and wife—Mr. and Mrs. Di Giovanni, she’d known all along that she’d take his name. It was important to him and she knew it.

  He took her in his arms and kissed her. She always said that he claimed her, made her his with his kisses. This time, it was true. She was his. He was hers.

  When they came up for air, their friends and family applauded, and she smiled around at them all.

  Marcos looked down into her eyes and smiled. “Are you ready to walk down there? Ready to go start our new life?”

  She squeezed his hand. “Stand here with me for a moment. We’re already in our new life. This is it.”

  It was true. The past, with all its hurt, was behind them now. The future, like the view from the terrace, was a beautiful picture that they would step into. But all that really mattered was this moment. She’d waited half her lifetime, and now that it was finally here, she intended to make the most of it;