Juliette laughed. “Is everything going to come back to food with you today?”
The doorbell rang before Dominic could reply, and Juliette caught her breath. “Oh my God, they’re here.”
“Yep,” he said. “Right on time, too. Do you want to get it or should I?”
“I’ll—” Just as she spoke the pot on the stove began to boil over. “Shit! Dominic—”
“I’ll get it,” he said, ducking out of her way as she hurried across the kitchen.
Juliette could hear the clamor in the hall and deduced that it was his family that had arrived, not hers—they were a distinctly chattery bunch.
“What smells so good?” Tyler, Dominic’s younger brother, asked the minute the door closed behind him.
“Juliette is making a million things in there,” Dominic said.
“I’m gonna go find out which one smells the best,” Ashley said.
“Enter at your own risk,” Dominic replied.
“Hey,” Ashley said a few seconds later, leaning around the wall and sticking her head into the kitchen. “Can we come in?”
“Sure,” Juliette said, dashing around trying to put things in serving dishes.
No sooner had Ashley reached for one of the crumbled cracker pieces on the potato casserole, Dominic’s mom smacked her hand away. “If you’re not going to help Juliette then get back out there with your brothers,” she ordered.
“I am helping!” Ashley protested. “They used to employ food tasters, right?”
“Not in this kitchen,” Lorna said, swatting at her daughter once more.
Dominic ducked into the kitchen and grabbed his sister’s hand. “Quit bugging my woman,” he ordered. “Come out to the balcony and help me prove a point to Tyler.”
Ashley grinned and followed him out. “What are we proving?”
“You’ll see,” Dominic promised as they walked away down the hall. “But I’m right. That’s the most important thing.”
“I probably don’t want to know what the point he’s trying to prove is,” Lorna said as she dished the green beans out into a glass bowl. “I get them together, and they act like they’re still kids.”
Juliette nodded. “It’s pretty cute, actually.”
“You mean when they’re not under your feet,” Lorna countered.
“Ashley looks good,” Juliette said when she was sure that she’d heard the balcony door close behind the group.
Lorna smiled in relief and pride. “She really does, doesn’t she?” she asked. “She’s met a new guy, and she never even talks about her ex anymore.”
“That’s fantastic,” Juliette said as she transferred the roast from the slow cooker to a serving dish. “I’m really happy things worked out for her.”
Lorna put her hand on Juliette’s arm. “I hear Rob’s doing better,” she said softly.
Juliette nodded. “He is. It’s still early days, of course, and he has a long road ahead of him, but I couldn’t be prouder—”
She stopped mid-sentence and pressed her hand to her back once more, glad that she’d put the roast down before the pain flashed through her.
“Sorry,” she said sheepishly when Lorna looked at her in concern. “I must have slept wrong. My back is killing me today.”
Lorna’s lips parted, but before she could speak there was another ring of the doorbell. “I guess that would be your parents,” she said. “You go answer it if you like. I’m happy to finish up here.”
Dominic had ducked in off of the balcony, so they answered the door together. From the way he was grinning smugly, she assumed that he’d proven his point. Whatever it was. One truly never knew what he’d get up to when his siblings were around.
“There’s my little girl!” Juliette’s father swept her into a hug that was returned enthusiastically.
When Roger finally let go of her, Carol stepped in. “You look so beautiful,” she said, cupping Juliette’s face in her hands. “You’re glowing!”
Juliette smiled. The “glow” at the moment was probably stress sweat, but she appreciated the compliment anyway.
“Thank you.” Then she stepped slightly to the side. “And this is Dominic. In person at last.”
They’d all spoken on video calls, but this was the first time that her parents had been able to get out to see the couple.
Dominic held his hand out, but Roger brushed it away. Then he pulled him in for a hug as well.
“It’s good to meet you, son.”
Juliette saw the look in Dominic’s eyes when he bent to hug her mother. She would have sworn that there was a sheen of tears there. With a shock, she realized that it had probably been a long time since a man had called him that. If they ever had.
Lorna came out of the kitchen and gave Carol and Roger a smile. “Hi, I’m Lorna. Dominic’s mom.”
“You did a good job with him,” Carol said promptly.
“I can say the same about you and Juliette,” Lorna agreed. “I was always afraid that Dominic would settle down with someone who couldn’t stand the sight of me, but Juliette has been absolutely wonderful.”
Dominic rolled his eyes. “When I’m this much of a mama’s boy? Come on, you should have known better.”
“I appreciate you being so good to her. You helped with setting up the nursery, right?” Carol asked, her voice wistful.
“I did,” Lorna said. “I’m happy to be a stand-in for when you two can’t get out here, and there’s still plenty of shopping to be done. Maybe we can all go out after dinner to look at clothes? There are some insanely cute boutiques around here.”
“I’d love that,” Carol said happily.
Juliette felt a flood of relief wash through her as Ashley and Tyler also came in from the balcony and introduced themselves. Why had she been so worried?
Chapter 23
Eventually, when his siblings had glanced toward the kitchen no less than three times each, Dominic suggested they move the party into the dining room.
An hour later, and the meal seemed to have fulfilled its promise. At least, if Juliette could judge from the satisfied expressions on everyone’s faces as they sprawled on the couches and chairs. In Ashley’s case, the floor was good enough: she was spread-eagled on the rug. Juliette sat on the couch in the circle of Dominic’s arm, listening to the conversation flow around her. She was pleasantly full and less pleasantly exhausted, so she was happy to simply listen.
She winced suddenly as the pain in her back flared again. Dominic glanced down at her, worried. She forced a smile as she looked up at him.
“I must have moved the wrong way,” she said. “Excuse me, I’ll be right back.”
Juliette walked down the hall to their bathroom. Once she was inside, she leaned over, bracing her hands on the sink as she tried to stretch out her lower back. Maybe if she could manage to do that, the pain would stop. It was hard to get a good stretch with her belly in the way, but she finally halfway managed. It didn’t really help so she started to straighten back up slowly.
That was when she felt a sudden gush of liquid. She shot straight up with a gasp. Then she yanked the door open.
“Dominic!”
“I know that I might be just a little bit biased,” Dominic said, some ten hours later, as he looked down at the little girl cradled in Juliette’s arms. “But she’s the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen.”
“She is,” Juliette agreed unabashedly. She rocked their little girl gently. She hadn’t been able to take her eyes off of her since she’d appeared.
“There is one thing…” Dominic began.
“I know,” Juliette murmured. Their daughter was fast approaching two hours old, and they hadn’t yet decided what to name her. At one point, Juliette would have yearned for Tami’s carefully penned lists of names and their meanings, but now, she thought she had finally narrowed her own list down to one.
“I think we should call her Carmen,” she said softly.
Dominic looked up at her, a handsome smile of reco
gnition dimpling his cheeks. “After the island?”
She nodded. “After the island.”
Dominic laughed and held her closer, as the baby slept in her arms, at their center. “Carmen,” he repeated. “Our daughter, born of breaking the rules. I couldn’t think of anything more perfect.”
Epilogue
Six crazy, hectic, blissful months after that day in the hospital, Juliette and Dominic walked down the red carpet at the premiere of the movie Juliette had penned, and Edward Ainsworth had directed.
People had turned out to the event in droves. Critics had called Juliette’s screenwriting debut “Astonishing,” “Emotionally charged,” and “Honest—the kind of movie that gives a person hope.”
The past few months had been revelatory in so many ways, and Juliette was now firm in her decision that writing was where her true passion lay. Despite having been inundated with offers in the wake of the release of Sunset Island, she found that writing satisfied a creative urge that acting— reciting words written by another—never truly had. She loved that her newfound craft allowed her to be with Carmen as much as possible, and meant that in future, she would be able to travel with Dominic as much or as little as she chose.
They stopped in front of the backdrop to allow the press to take their pictures. She waved into the cameras and gave them all a smile as she tried to soak in the moment. This was it. This was everything that she’d ever wanted.
Though they tended to keep out of the spotlight as much as an A-list couple were able to, they had mutually decided that the premiere of the first film her mother penned would be a suitable occasion to bring their baby along. Dominic had Carmen cradled in one arm, the other arm held snugly around Juliette’s shoulders. Their little girl was sleeping peacefully despite the crowds and the bright lights, and Juliette was incredibly proud of her.
She started to take a step away and let the next celebrity have their turn, but Dominic tightened his grip on her.
“Hang on, baby girl,” he said.
She glanced up at him in confusion. That was when he dropped to one knee and pulled something from his pocket. There were gasps from the crowd, and then shutters began clicking at an even faster rate.
Juliette barely noticed any of it. All she could focus on was the sparkle of the emerald set in rose gold that Dominic was holding up. Then she noticed the small tremor in his hand and the nervousness behind his smile.
“Will you marry me, Juliette?” Dominic asked.
She took him in. Their daughter in one arm. A gorgeous ring in the other hand. Not just any ring, but a ring that he’d known that she would love. What else was there to say but yes? She’d never wanted anything more than she wanted to be with him.
“Yes, I will, Dominic. Yes!”
The crowd roared when he stood up again and drew her to him, kissing her in front of everyone on the red carpet and anyone who might be watching the event from home. She clung to him, uncaring about the cameras flashing all around them. They’d be all over the gossip magazines in the morning, but it didn’t matter. She was going to have him every single day for the rest of her life.
When she drew back from their kiss, she let out a long breath.
He threw his head back and laughed. “Are you all right, my love?”
Juliette nodded, dazed. “I am. I just keep thinking that I’m going to wake up any second.”
He took her hand and pressed it to his cheek. “You’re awake,” he promised her, his voice rough from suppressed tears of joy. “But I'm going to spend the rest of my life making you feel like you’re living your dream.”
“Oh, Dominic,” Juliette said seriously as she traced his cheek with her thumb. “You already do.”
The End
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A Baby For Christmas
Time for a tease!
Up next is the first chapter of the previous book in our Baby Surprises series, A Baby For Christmas
Happy reading!
Layla & Holly x
Copyright 2018 by Layla Valentine and Holly Rayner
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part by any means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the explicit written permission of the author.
All characters depicted in this fictional work are consenting adults, of at least eighteen years of age. Any resemblance to persons living or deceased, particular businesses, events, or exact locations are entirely coincidental.
Chapter 1
Shayla
“Damn, I just love the holidays. Don’t you?” my boss said from the driver’s seat.
It took all the restraint I had not to grumble. Seated in the passenger’s seat of my boss’s car as we made our way through Brooklyn, I tried not to let the sight of the Christmas decorations festooned all over the brownstone apartments we passed put me in a sour mood. It was a dreary, overcast day, and the sky looked heavy with sleet.
No, I didn’t love the holidays. Not even a little. But Richie Garland, my boss, sure as hell did. So, shrewd navigator of business relationships that I was, I kept my true opinions to myself.
“I don’t know,” I said. “Don’t you get a little annoyed with the way they seem to be putting up decorations earlier and earlier every year? It seems like the second Thanksgiving is over the autumn-colored stuff comes down and the red-and-white stuff goes up.”
The smile didn’t leave Richie’s face. Clearly, he didn’t feel the same way.
“Nope,” he said cheerily. “Not even a little bit. They call it the Christmas creep, but I love it. The holidays are a time for family and giving and good feelings, so why put it all off? The sooner, the better, I say.”
I kept my mouth into a tight line, not wanting to say anything that might keep Richie going on about the subject. But I knew Richie well enough by now to know that the odds of him dropping the subject were very, very low.
True to form, he went on, oblivious.
“You know,” he continued, “there are actually people who don’t like Christmas? Can you even believe that?”
I didn’t say anything. When Richie asked a question like that, he wasn’t looking for an answer.
“Real-life grinches, that’s what those people seem like to me. Christmas is just magical, don’t you agree?”
Again, I said nothing, and as always he just went right on talking.
“I like to think of Christmas as the reward for getting through another year. What better way to put all of the stress of the last few months behind us than relaxing with friends and family and sharing presents and all that good stuff.”
My eyes locked onto a small team of men in front of a large, glass-fronted department store as they hoisted a dark green pine tree upright.
“Some people might feel that the holidays are more stress than they’re worth,” I said, immediately chastising myself for offering an opinion.
“Then those people are crazy. If you’re getting stressed out by the holidays, then you’re not doing them right. Let me tell you a story about a Christmas about, oh, ten years ago, back before I came to New York and started the company. It was in Boston, and probably about the worst winter I’d seen in my life. My parents were desperate to get me to Philadelphia, but the roads were closed, and…”
Off he went. Richie Garland, the founder of Liminal Graphics—the company where I’d worked as a designer for the last few years since moving to the city—had a tendency to ramble like that. Once he had a subject in his head that he wanted to discuss, that was it. You either got swept up in his enthusiasm or found the best way to politely smile and nod while letting your mind drift somewhere else.
That’s what I�
�d normally do, at least. But the subject of the holidays was one that I had a hard time ignoring.
Every year when the Christmas décor went up, it did little more than remind me of a childhood of being bounced from foster home to foster home. Not much to celebrate when you’re a six-year-old who doesn’t know if she’s going to be spending the next year being cared for by would-be adoptive parents or in a group foster home.
But Richie didn’t need to know any of that. And it didn’t help that he was oblivious as always, not noticing just how uncomfortable the subject made me.
“…and then, at the last minute, my mother found a cheap bus ticket from Boston to Philly. Wasn’t going to be the most pleasant trip in the world, but I’d make it. And sure enough, it ended up being one of the nicest Christmases we’d ever had.”
“Sounds great,” I said offering commentary on a story that I’d missed most of the details of. “So, tell me again about this company we’re checking out?”
Richie’s expression lit up at the subject. If there was one way to get him off whatever subject he was fixated on, it was to bring up work.
“CooperWare,” he said, taking a slow right turn through an intersection. “One of the top up-and-coming software firms in the city. Came out of nowhere a couple of years ago to totally dominate the market.”
He went on. Relief washed over me as I realized he’d gotten off his holiday kick. For now, at least.
“And the CEO, geez, he’s something else. Pretty much a kid. How old are you?”
I had to chuckle at Richie’s total lack of tact.
The Sweetest Mistake Page 15