“Thanks,” she said as she playfully spun around. “I cleaned up nicely.”
“Yeah, you sure did.”
“So are you just here with some friends?” she asked a little confused at why I was at the launch of a new perfume line.
“I got in contact with Patrick and asked about you. He hooked me up.”
“That damn guy. He’s always meddling,” she joked. “Come with me, let’s go in the back and talk for a minute.”
Summer grabbed my hand and guided me through the party to a separate back room area that looked like it was just for VIP people. There were several couches all around, and it was much quieter than the main party was. I still felt like I was inside and not in a tent, though.
“It’s so good to see you,” I said as we sat down. “I’m sorry I didn’t reach out earlier, but …” I trailed off. “I’m just sorry I didn’t do it.”
“I know how it is. Life is busy. I’m actually getting ready to go overseas soon, so it’s a good thing you found me. I’ll be traveling a lot over the next year or so.”
“Oh, that’s exciting,” I said as my hopes of asking her out on a real date were crushed.
“Yeah, it’s pretty exciting. So what are you up to? How is Robert, and what’s happening with the company? Did you start working on that new deal? Is it going well? Geez, sorry I’m asking so many questions. It’s just so good to see you.”
Her hand reached over and rested on my leg as we sat facing each other on the couch. From her body language, I could have sworn she was excited to see me, even if she was going to be traveling out of the country and unable to go on any dates.
Then I thought about what Rob and his new crazy girlfriend had said. I had let six months pass me by when I could have been talking to Summer and taking her out on dates. There was no way I was letting this moment pass me by. Maybe she was going to say no to me, and maybe she’d turn me down, but I had to at least ask.
“Well, I really came here for a reason,” I started to say as I felt my mouth getting dry and the nerves getting the best of me. “It sounds like you’re going to be really busy with traveling and all, but I’d love to take you out sometime.”
There, I said it. I’d officially asked her out. Now she could deny me, and I would be done with all of this. I’d have the closure I needed to move on, and I wouldn’t have to dwell on the thoughts of what could have been between the two of us.
“Yeah, I’d like that,” Summer said unexpectedly.
“I totally understand, you’re really busy, and I just wanted to give it the official college try,” I said as I started to get up to leave, but she grabbed my wrist and stopped me.
“I said yes,” she expressed with a laugh.
“What? You did? I thought you were traveling.”
“I’m pretty sure I can find time for a date with you,” she said with a playful wink.
“Really? You’re saying yes?” I practically screamed as the realization hit me.
“Shhh, people are going to think you proposed to me or something.” She laughed as she pulled me back to the couch to sit with her. “I’ve been thinking about you a lot, and I’d love to see if the feelings are still there. Actually, I know they are still there. I was just afraid to reach out to you.”
“Tomorrow, let’s go out tomorrow. I’ll pick you up at eight, and we can spend the day together.”
“Tomorrow?” she asked a little shocked that I wanted to go out so quickly.
“Yes, I wasted a lot of time with you, and I don’t want to waste another minute. You and I are going out tomorrow. I’m done wasting time. I want to see you as much as possible before you start traveling, and even after you leave, I think I can squeeze a trip in to see you. I’m done making excuses. I want to see you.”
“I like that,” she said as she tilted her head toward me and moved in a little closer. “I’d really like to go out with you Mister English,” she said playfully.
“I’d really like to go out with you too, Miss Edwards,” I said as I leaned in and kissed her softly.
Epilogue
Summer
Following my dreams was turning out to be pretty darn amazing. I’d landed some big named deals and was traveling the world for the last year doing exactly what I loved. Part of my job was actually to post on social media and keep people updated on the campaigns I was working on and everything that was going on in my day to day life.
Even my father couldn’t believe that I’d finally found the perfect fit for a job. I didn’t need him to help support me, and I’d actually managed to pay him back all of the money he had loaned me since I moved out on my own.
Being a full-fledged adult was a hell of a lot of fun too. I had my own money, made my own schedule, and I got to choose who I want to love. Most importantly, I had Tyler and the kids. And as we flew to Barcelona for one of my jobs, I couldn’t help smiling at Tyler as he was busy working on his laptop with Thomas lying in his lap on the plane.
Faith and I were cuddled up in our first class seats watching one of her favorite movies and getting ready to go to sleep very soon as well. Life was perfect. I honestly couldn’t have imagined anything better than how things were turning out for Tyler and me.
After he came to my big perfume kick off and asked me out, we both started making a real effort to spend time together. It was a fresh start to our relationship, and everything between us couldn’t have been more perfect.
This trip was the first real time I’d gotten to spend with the kids since I’d moved out, though. We had talked over Skype a few times, and I loved sending them fun toys from the different places. But this trip was going to be fantastic.
My family was meeting us in Barcelona, and Tyler had even managed to convince his parents to stop out for a quick visit. We had plans to all go to dinner and get to know each other a little bit, which was a sign that things between Tyler and me were going better than either of us could have expected.
When Faith and I finished watching a movie, I tucked her in so she could get a little sleep while I went over to talk to Tyler for a few minutes. My schedule was pretty busy while we were in Barcelona, and I just had to make sure he had plenty of things scheduled for him and the kids, so they didn’t get too bored.
“Tomorrow should be a busy day. I need to shoot most of the afternoon, but then I’ll come straight over to the restaurant and meet you guys. Did you find some things to keep the kids busy with?”
“Don’t you worry. Me and the kids have a full schedule of our own planned,” he said mischievously.
“Do I even want to know?” I laughed.
“Probably not.”
“Okay, well I’m going to get some sleep. You should rest too. The kids are going to be tuckered out from this trip tomorrow and probably be a little hard to handle.”
“I’ll rest soon,” he said as he gave me a sweet kiss before allowing me to return to my seat.
As I reclined my seat, I couldn’t help smiling over at Tyler and Thomas. Tyler continued working on his laptop while Thomas wiggled around a little before getting comfortable again. I really did love this family very much.
There was no way of knowing what the future was going to bring us all, but I was hopeful that the future would include this awesome family that I’d grown to love so much. I honestly couldn’t imagine my life without Tyler in it. I couldn’t imagine not knowing the kids as they grew up and not being part of their lives as they became adults.
I blew Tyler a little kiss before closing my eyes and sleeping for the rest of the flight. There was a sense of excitement, though, and I found it hard to fall totally asleep. Instead, I tossed and turned for at least an hour before finally resting and getting a few hours of sleep.
Working as a model wasn’t nearly as glamorous as I thought it was going to be, but I still loved it a lot. I’d only slept about four hours before we landed in Barcelona and was exhausted. But the hustle of getting off the plane and saying goodbye to Tyler and the kids got my a
drenaline pumping enough that I was able to be wide-eyed and happy when I showed up at the set for my afternoon shoot.
It also helped that there were hair and makeup people to hide the evidence of my tired state and make me look amazing. I was able to relax while the stylist got me looking like perfection and the director went over what the day would look like and what I needed to do.
There were lots of hurry up and wait moments throughout the day. When I first arrived, they hurried me into hair and makeup and then we did one round of shooting. Then they hurried me through a change of wardrobe and update of my hair, but I had to wait nearly an hour for them to finish the set changes. I did my best to rest throughout the day, but as it dragged on longer and longer, I started to feel the exhaustion setting in.
By the time we moved outside for photos, I was grateful that I had the sun shining on me to keep me awake. It was an exhausting day, though. I would have gone straight back to the hotel room if I didn’t have Tyler and the kids in town with me. Plus, our families had come for dinner and to spend some time in this amazing city, and I couldn’t let everyone down.
As we wrapped up the day, I slipped into a sweet summer dress and sandals as I had my car take me to our restaurant for dinner. I could barely keep my eyes open, but I was so excited to see everyone when I walked into the back room and saw the excitement everyone had while enjoying such a beautiful place.
“Summer!” Faith exclaimed as she ran up to me and hugged me.
“Well, hello there little lady,” I said as I hugged her back. “This is one amazing dress you have here.”
I was beyond surprised to see that it wasn’t just our family there, though. Patrick, Amy, and Rebecca were there. Robert and his fiancée were there. The room was packed with our friends and family. What I expected to be a fun dinner with just family had turned into an all out party with so many of our friends in attendance.
“Thank you. Daddy and I went shopping and picked it out for today.”
“I love it.”
“Thomas got a special outfit too,” she said as she pointed to Thomas who was playing with Tyler and laughing at the end of the table.
I waved at them and then at my parents who had gotten up from the table and were heading my way. My mother and father looked so excited to be there with me, and our relationship had grown a lot over the last year.
Learning responsibility had been a bit hard for me, and although I was admittedly really angry when they had first kicked me out of the house, it was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. Not only did I learn to take care of myself, but I also learned so much about what I valued and what I really wanted in my life.
Their tough love approach had been painful for them. It was probably more painful for them than it had been for me, but I was very grateful that they had the strength to do it. Since being involved in Faith and Thomas’ life, I’d started to realize just how hard being a role model for kids was. Obviously, I wasn’t their parent, but I felt a little taste of that pressure, and it only made me more grateful for what my own parents had done for me.
“You look so pretty, Mom,” I said as I gave her a hug and kiss. “Did you go shopping already without me?”
“You know I had to get a special dress for tonight,” she said as she started to tear up.
I didn’t understand why everyone wanted something special to wear for this dinner. Sure, I was excited to have everyone together, and I’d put on a cute summer dress too. But it was getting a little suspicious that everyone was saying they bought their dresses for this event.
“Dad, you look pretty handsome too,” I joked so as not to leave him out of the conversation.
“Baby girl,” he said so seriously that I was a little worried something was wrong and he was about to tell me horrible news. “I just want to tell you how proud I am of you. You really are showing what a wonderful woman you are, and I love how you have turned out.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I said as I gave him a hug.
“We are going to go sit down,” Mom said. “You know Tyler’s parents are really nice. Have you gotten to meet them yet?”
“Not yet, I’m really nervous about it.”
“You better head over there then. I know Mrs. English was really looking forward to meeting you. Tyler was telling them all about you, and he couldn’t say enough nice things. I really do love that guy. He’s so perfect for you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I said suspiciously as she and my father went back to their seats.
I motioned to Tyler that I was going to go talk to his family, and he got up and met me over there. He grabbed a hold of my hand and pulled it up to his lips for a little kiss before introducing me to his mother and father.
“Mom, this is the amazing Summer Edwards that I was telling you all about,” he said very gallantly.
“It’s so nice to meet you, young lady. I have heard so many things about you, and I’ve seen all your ads. I can’t believe my shmuck of a son managed to land such a beautiful woman.”
I was pretty sure she was teasing, but it was an odd way of referring to her son.
“Thank you,” I said without knowing what else I could say to that.
“You are beautiful,” his father said to me as he shook my hand and then pulled me in for an awkward hug.
“So my parents have never been to Barcelona, and I sent them on a tour today. Why don’t you guys tell Summer about some of the things you say. Maybe she can decide what we should go see later this week when we have time,” Tyler said as he left me there with his family.
I was a little pissed off that Tyler had disappeared so quickly and basically thrown me to the wolves. They were nice people, but it took me a little bit to get to know their sense of humor and realize that they weren’t always being serious with me.
Mrs. English went on and on about every site they saw while on their tour. To be honest, I was too exhausted to hear most of what she was saying. At one point, I was pretty sure I’d even fallen asleep while she was talking.
I was startled awake by a loud clanging noise that seemed to be coming from the front of the room. It took me a minute to figure out what was going on when I saw Tyler standing in front of everyone on one of the chairs.
He banged a knife against a glass until everyone stopped talking and sat down in their seats. I had no idea why he was making so much noise and trying to get everyone to be quiet.
“Summer, can you come up here?” he asked as he pointed at me and motioned for me to come stand with him.
He got off the chair and put the glass and knife down before looking out at everyone with a huge smile. Thomas and Faith were standing right next to him and had the biggest smiles on their faces that I’d ever seen from the two of them.
“What’s going on?” I asked skeptically.
“You’ll see,” he whispered to me before turning toward our family. “As many of you know, I’ve been in love with this lady for a long time,” Tyler said as he smiled at me. “She might have taken a little longer to fall in love with me, but I think she came around in the end.”
It was an awesome surprise that Tyler had gotten all of our friends and family together and, suddenly as he continued talking, I started to realize what might actually be going on. My hands shook with excitement, and I started to cry before he had even managed to say any of the important stuff.
“Oh, my God,” I said as I was taking in the moment.
“I haven’t even asked you anything yet.” He laughed and then turned back toward the group of our friends. “Okay, so I love this girl, and I happen to know that my two beautiful children love her too and well, we decided that we wanted to ask you something.”
Tyler pulled out a box from his jacket, but he didn’t get down on one knee yet. Instead, Faith came up to me and quietly urged me to come down closer to her.
“I wanted to know if you’d like to be my dad’s wife,” she said softly as she put a necklace around my neck.
She didn’t wait for
me to respond before taking a step back and pushing Thomas forward. Thomas was already in tears as he pulled out his own necklace for me and put it around my neck. He wrapped his arms around me and held on tightly as he tried to say something through his tears, but I couldn’t understand what he was saying.
“Take a deep breath,” I said softly as I kneeled down in front of him and tried to help him calm down. “You are doing a great job. I’m so excited for this necklace, and I love you very much.”
“I love you,” he finally managed to say before going back and standing behind his father.
I was in tears by the time I stood up, and so was everyone else around me. My mother was barely able to see as her makeup streamed down her face. Patrick was sniffling like a toddler himself, and both Amy and Rebecca looked like they were about to have a total meltdown as they jumped up and down with excitement.
When Tyler finally managed to get down on one knee and pull out the ring, the room erupted with so much excitement that I couldn’t help laughing a little. It was such a surreal moment like something right out of a fairytale, and I took in every last detail of it.
The smell of pasta from the kitchen, the lights as they flickered around the room and even the slight shake in Tyler’s hand as he held the ring up and prepared to say what he had obviously planned out for a long time.
“I’m so lucky. Not many men can say they have been lucky enough to find a true love in their life, and I’ve been doubly blessed. I love you so much. You are truly an amazing woman, and we would like to know if you would be part of our family. So without further ado, will you marry me?”
My eyes were fogged up from the tears and makeup running together. Tyler looked like he could hardly see from his tears, and both of the kids were crying so hard that I just wanted to pick them up and hug them.
“Yes,” I managed to say. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Tyler slipped the ring on my finger and then grabbed a hold of me and spun me in a circle. As he sat me down, I felt the little hands of Faith and Thomas wrap around me, and the four of us hugged for what had to be five whole minutes. I couldn’t believe how absolutely perfect my life was turning out. I could have never imagined being in this moment with this man and his two beautiful children. I was beyond blessed to have them in my life. At one point in my life, I would have said I didn’t deserve this much happiness, but now I was just grateful to have it in my life.
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