by M Dauphin
“Yeah…” I trail off, suddenly wishing Al was right here next to me.
“She looks about as happy as you are. She ready to have a new baby in the mix?”
“Absolutely.” My heart swells with pride for this new family of mine.
***
Three weeks later, on Christmas Eve, we’re finally bringing Dean home from the hospital. These last three weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions, from spending every day with my son and girlfriend, to coming home to an empty house. I can’t wait for his cries and laughter to ring through these halls. The funeral for Trixie was sad, but I’m happy everything is said and done. She never wanted a baby, and I’m sad for Dean that he’ll never get to know his birth mother… but I know Alexis will fill the mother spot ten times better than Trixie ever could have.
I know what I want my life to be. And I know Alexis is it for me. So, this evening, everything needs to go perfectly.
It’s just the three of us tonight. Alexis’s parents want to come in so badly, but she told them to wait until tomorrow. Tonight, we want it just the three of us in our home. And that’s exactly why tonight I need to do this.
I bought the ring last week, and it’s been burning a hole in my pocket ever since. I want us to be a complete family. I want her forever.
“You good to go, Daddy?” She smiles at me from the back seat, her hand inside the car seat, resting gently on Dean. She’s more than excited for this new chapter of our life together to start.
I just pray she doesn’t know what I’m going to do tonight. She’s always loved surprises.
“Absolutely.”
I’ve never driven as carefully as I am now that there’s a baby in the car. Every bump, I’m worried is hurting him. Every turn, I take like a ninety year old, because I don’t want him to slide around. Sure, he’s in his car seat safely, but my brain is so scared to hurt him.
Once we’re home, I finally feel at peace.
With everything.
The tree is ready for Christmas morning, the candles are lit, Al is sleeping in the chair, snuggling Dean while he rests from his long day. I take a picture of the perfect setting in front of me, realizing how much in love I am with my little family.
I slip the ring out of its holder in the bedroom, careful not to wake Al as I tiptoe back to the living room. The brilliant platinum and rose gold ring is nothing like anything I’ve ever seen before. It’s unique, just like our love and relationship. Slipping the ring in between Dean’s tiny fingers, I lay a note across the blanket he’s wrapped in, then sit in the chair and cough loud enough to wake Al, but not loud enough to stir the baby.
She opens her eyes and looks around. The room is dark, the candles are lit, and the tree is the only bright light in the room. She smiles at me then looks down at Dean, still fast asleep in her arms, and gasps. Her eyes flick to me, as her free hand goes to pick up the note.
Those five words have never gotten a more beautiful response from someone.
Will you be my mommy?
The smile that spreads across her lips, the tears that start to fall down her cheeks…. She’s sobbing as she picks up the ring, and looks at me with a sparkle in her eyes. Fuck me, she’s so fucking beautiful.
“Bray-” she starts,
“I love you, Alexis Grant. Dean loves you. I want nothing more than for us to be a whole family, and I want to make sure you’re mine for life.”
She lets out a sob, and then holds her hand in front of her mouth before she wakes Dean. Silently nodding her head ‘yes’, I let out a sigh of relief and take the ring, gently placing it on her finger before leaning in a kissing her.
I finally find my forever. She was right in front of me the whole time.
Epilogue
Six years later
“Fingers here,” I hear Braydon say from the back room. “Now, this is the pick. This is what you’ll learn to strum with at first.”
“You don’t use one of these, Daddy,” Dean’s sweet voice carries through the hall and I smile. He’s so dead set on being like daddy. Braydon chuckles, and I hear him clear his throat.
“You’re right. But Daddy’s been playing for a long time… One day, you’ll find your rhythm and know how you play best. For now, we start with this.”
The chords start sounding through the halls, and the baby starts to move. Only seven months along, she’s already responding to her father’s music. I place my hand on my stomach and smile, loving to feel her movements.
We’ve been through some tough spots these last six years. Being a parent isn’t the easiest job. It’s hard, and we’ve learned a lot about our parenting styles in the last few years. Sure we fight, but, at the end of the day, we’re still in love with each other, probably more than when we started this wild ride. I love watching him with Dean. I love hearing him talk to the baby girl I’m carrying. He’s such a fantastic father.
“Hey, you two,” he croons, walking in to the room. In his white t-shirt and dark jeans, he’s just as sexy as the day I met him. Walking over to me, his hands instinctively go to the baby bump and his lips caress mine ever so gently.
“Hi you.” I smile up at him from the glider and wince when she kicks. “Did you feel that?!” His hands cup my stomach and his face lights up.
“I did! Oh my god, that’s so amazing.” He leans down and starts whispering to her and the love I have for this man in front of me overflows.
He’s been active in the band ever since they came back from their tour. They pulled from the label and now only do local gigs, but he couldn’t be happier. His heart lies with his family now… the band is something he’ll always be a part of, but it’s not his sole focus.
We are.
He did all of this for us.
I’ve stopped modeling in the last few years, but I’m still very active with CK and their affiliates. I’ve been working on a new clothing line for young women lately and things are going surprisingly well. We used some of the money from Lane to set up a foundation for young cancer patients, something we’re both very passionate about.
I feel like things have finally calmed down and we’re leading a pretty normal life, and I couldn’t be happier.
It took lots of heartbreak, but we finally found exactly what we needed.
Each other.
The End
About the Author
An avid, self proclaimed closet book nerd by the age of nine, Dauphin didn’t take her love of fictional worlds public until she self-published her first book almost 20 years later. Since putting to paper the voices in her head, she’s fallen in love with a career of building, ruining, and rebuilding fictional character’s lives. Currently, she has self published two series, two full length novels, and two full length co authored books she’s written with her other half HQ Frost, as well as been involved with two anthology sets. Her love will always reside with the romance genre, but she does enjoy going off the grid every now and then with non-fiction.
From Southern Illinois, born and raised, she now resides with her husband, two small boys, and two very busy dogs.
If you friend her on Facebook, you’ll be subjecting yourself to a whole lot of awesome…. So what are you waiting for?! Find her here: www.facebook.com/authormdauphin if you want to follow her author ramblings, go here www.mdauphin.com if you want to see what she has to offer (and some hot guys, too) and if you want to chat, email her here: [email protected]. You can also follow her on Instagram at @M_Dauphin3 or Twitter @AuthorMDauphin.