by Elias Taylor
On the day of her son’s birth, Kayla had been terrified. Her water broke a full week before her due date. Every aspect of Kayla’s plan depended on the due date. She had not even completed some key tasks.
She had called Tristen and started sobbing into the phone.
Within twenty minutes, Tristen had arrived at their home. He found Kayla sitting with her big bag of supplies and tears streaming down her face.
He laughed out loud. Kayla shrieked in indignation.
“I’m in pain, and my plan is ruined!” she had yelled.
“We’re about to meet our son,” Tristen said. “And you’re crying about it.”
Kayla froze and stared up at Tristen. Just like that, he made her forget about her plans and schedules.
Once Tristen had changed Kayla’s perspective, he had been the picture of sympathy. He had massaged her tense shoulders during the long hours of labor. He had whispered words of love and encouragement when she thought she couldn’t push anymore. He reminded her that she had the strength.
Tristen held her hand throughout the delivery and wept tears of joy when he saw his son.
Kayla had been nervous about the first few weeks with the baby. He was so small, and there was so much to remember to do. She had read endless articles about how challenging feeding could be.
She ended up enjoying every second. Even when the baby wouldn’t eat or sleep. Even when Kayla had been dead-eyed with exhaustion. She had still loved it. Their child was a little miracle, and Kayla had savored the glorious time she got to spend with him.
Tristen had loved it too. He had been with her for every late night when the baby couldn’t sleep. He had woken up to change diapers and rock Tristen. He had talked Kayla through every panic about the baby’s diet and weight gain.
And he had helped Kayla when it came time for her to return to work. He supported her career, and they had worked together to find the right balance. It had been challenging to be away from the baby for a whole day after getting to spend weeks at home with him, but Kayla adjusted. She learned to enjoy the sanctuary of work, where she could focus on her other skills outside of singing an infant to sleep.
She had even worked out a schedule with Clifford that allowed her to work from home two days a week. He had said it was fine as long as her productivity didn’t slip. Kayla promised it wouldn’t, and she had been good on her word.
Kayla was loving a balance between her work life and her personal life far more than she had ever believed possible. The baby wasn’t a distraction from her goals. It only added to her motivation.
Plus, her new little family made her happy. Far happier than going to work and doing nothing else had made her. Kayla liked having a personal life.
Kayla had done so well when she transitioned back into working full-time that Clifford had even offered her another promotion. She had turned it down. For the time being, she still wanted to be home to feed her baby his dinner and see him take his first steps. Promotions would always come, but her baby would only be young once.
In fact, he was growing so fast that Kayla was already considering another one. Not right away of course. But soon.
Tristen had continued to excel at his work. He had never fully come clean about the fake engagement. Kayla advised him that sometimes in a workplace a few white lies were fine, even when they weren’t that little. Besides, she and Tristen had ended up together in the end. His co-workers knew they were together and supported the growing family. Some of his colleagues and David had even attended the baby shower.
It was a Friday, and Kayla was leaving right at 5, and she didn’t feel a drop of guilt about it. She was going to go home and cuddle her son and then kiss her amazing boyfriend.
As soon as she was in the door, Kayla heard her baby’s cooing, and her heart swelled.
Her mom was in the living room, helping baby Tristen on the floor. They had a schedule that allowed for Kayla’s mom to babysit during weekdays.
“How’s my beautiful boy?” Kayla asked.
She kicked off her work heels and swooped down to gather Tristen in her arms. He giggled and waved his chubby fists, and Kayla smothered his cheeks with kisses.
Her mother watched her with glee.
“He was good today,” her mom said. “And he took a nice long nap, so he’s in a good mood.”
“Awesome, I think the afternoon naps are really helping him sleep through the night,” Kayla said. “We just got to keep him on the schedule.”
Her mother sighed and grabbed her bag.
“Will you ever abandon all your schedules?”
“Never,” Kayla said.
She gave her mom a playful wink as her mother left. Kayla would never give up making schedules, but these days, she knew how to adjust and adapt to unforeseen circumstances. With an infant son, there was an unforeseen event pretty much every day.
Kayla sat down in an armchair and bounced Tristen on her knee. He had her dark hair and Tristen’s blue eyes. Kayla thought it was the perfect combination. Cleo, who had been the obvious choice for godmother, liked to joke that the baby looked like his parents, but he had her easy-going personality. She was always reminding Tristen and Kayla about the stressful few days when Cleo thought she was going to have to be a second parent to the baby if Tristen didn’t step up.
A few minutes later, Tristen arrived home. He dropped his bag in the closet and plopped down next to Kayla. He put one hand on his baby’s back and leaned forward to give Kayla a deep kiss.
She smiled as their lips met. Pregnancy had forced a lot of changes, but they had always managed to maintain the passion between them. Even when their entire relationship had been faked, they had physical chemistry, and it had not faded.
“Alright, my turn to make dinner,” Tristen said. “What do you want?”
“Hm, pasta?”
“You always want pasta,” Tristen said.
Kayla laughed and followed Tristen into the kitchen. She sat at the counter holding the baby while Tristen whipped up some spaghetti carbonara.
They sat and chatted about their days. Tristen had landed a big client, and Kayla had finished an important project. They paused a few times when the baby got fussy.
After dinner, Tristen held the baby while Kayla did the dishes.
It was a simple and comforting routine.
Kayla liked knowing that this was what their days would look like. She liked knowing that they would sing the baby to sleep together and then spend an hour watching a TV show. Then Tristen would make love to her, soft and sweet, and somehow he would make her feel like they were still just dating, and they had no worries at all in the world. He knew how to make her feel safe and loved. Even when he was tired from work or parenting, he was never tired of her. And she was never tired of him.
When they curled up in their bed that night, after making love, Tristen wrapped his warm arms around Kayla.
“Excited for tomorrow?” he asked.
“Sure,” she said. “It’s just a club barbecue.”
“I think it’s gonna be really fun,” Tristen said.
“Why?” Kayla asked.
“I dunno,” Tristen said. “I just have a feeling that you might get a little too into the jungle juice again.”
Kayla squealed and elbowed him in the chest.
“I’ve learned my lesson,” she said. “I had one wild night, and I got stuck with you and a baby.”
“You wound me with your words,” he said.
Kayla drifted to sleep with a smile on her face.
The next morning they had breakfast and played with the baby. On nice days, they liked to take him on walks in the park.
They headed to the barbecue in the mid-afternoon. Tristen thought it was so funny how all of a sudden they were the old members of the club who showed up with a kid and then left early. Kayla, if she was being honest, preferred it this way.
The barbecue was the same as always. The grills were blazing and long picnic tables were set up with plates
of food. The younger women were preening and tossing their hair; the younger guys were clutching beers and planning the bonfire.
Kayla’s parents came dashing over to scoop up the baby. Even though her mother babysat often, she never got tired of showering her grandson with affection.
While her parents held the baby, Kayla and Tristen grabbed plates of food and settled down at a table. Tristen was buzzing with a strange energy. He was bouncing his knee so much under the table that he kept knocking into Kayla’s knee.
She patted his thigh with her hand.
“What’s gotten into you?” she asked.
“Nothing,” Tristen said. “I just love a good barbecue.”
Kayla shrugged and ate her food. He was being weird, but she was enjoying catching up with old acquaintances and planning bike rides for the future too much to think about it.
When the barbecue was in full swing, Kayla took the baby back from her mother and walked around the perimeter of the party so everyone could say hi. The other members thought it was adorable that Kayla and Tristen had ended up together, and they all doted on the baby. Fiend, in particular, gave the baby extra attention. Tristen had told Kayla what Fiend had done for him, and she was forever grateful for the older man’s sage advice delivered at a critical point.
Kayla was chatting with Fiend when she heard someone calling for everyone’s attention. She turned and saw Tristen standing on a bench and raising his beer.
“Everyone!” Tristen called. “I got something to say!”
Everyone settled down and listened with eagerness. Kayla blinked in surprise. Tristen must have been planning this speech.
“One year ago, I came to a biker barbecue,” Tristen said. “And I got the chance to talk to the most beautiful girl in the club, right by the bonfire.”
Kayla narrowed her eyes. If he mentioned how drunk she had been, she would kill him. Luckily, Tristen knew her enough to avoid the details of that night. He had no problem teasing her about it in private, but he knew she hated sharing embarrassing episodes in public.
“And then, a few weeks later, I was falling in love with that girl,” Tristen said. “One night, she told me that she had always wanted to travel to Paris.”
Kayla’s mouth fell open as Tristen reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a plane ticket.
“Well, it’s taken me a year, but I’m going to take her to Paris,” Tristen said.
The crowd erupted into cheers and shouts, and everyone pushed Kayla towards the front. Kayla drifted over to where Tristen stood, still waving his arms. She shifted the baby in her arms and smiled up at Tristen. Paris would be delightful, but she still wasn’t sure why he was announcing this to the whole biker club.
“I’m not done, I’m not done,” Tristen said.
The crowd quieted down so Tristen could continue.
“I’m going to take her to Paris on our honeymoon,” Tristen said. “If she would agree to make me the happiest man on earth and marry me.”
Kayla gasped with joy as Tristen hopped down from the bench. He pulled a box from his jacket and knelt before her.
He popped open the box to reveal a beautiful diamond. It was a classic square shape. Simple but elegant, just the kind of ring Kayla had dreamed about. She hadn’t told him how much she wanted it. Tristen had done enough for her over the past year, so she hadn’t wanted to force him into marriage. She was overjoyed that he wanted it just as much as she did.
“Kayla Carpenter,” Tristen said. “Will you marry me?”
Kayla smiled down at the guy who had always been able to make her laugh. At the man who had shown her how to be truly happy in all facets of life. At the partner who had stayed by her side during a dramatic and beautiful transition. At the amazing husband to her gorgeous baby.
She took a deep breath and felt a well of excitement bubble up inside her. She was excited for the rest of her life.
“Yes,” Kayla said.
The crowd cheered, and Kayla and her baby were instantly wrapped in Tristen’s arms.
About the Author
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HAYDEN’S GRANDFATHER created a club and made a huge mistake.
He pissed off the leader of the warring club.
Falling in love with the leader’s daughter was forbidden.
It was dangerous.
They couldn’t keep their love a secret.
His grandfather had two options on the table.
Give up everything that he’d worked for... or abandon the love of his life.
The two clubs could never become one.
Could they?