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“Yes, I would love to,” he says. “It would be an honor to be a Finch. Especially with, you know, everything.”
I kiss my new fiancé’s cheek, knowing what he means. His relationship with his stepfather never recovered. It came out that Max’s mom and stepdad hadn’t been getting along for years and they hoped retirement would save their marriage. Turns out, lying about a grandchild and controlling Max was enough for Max’s mom to finally ask for a divorce.
She’s considering moving to Goldheart, and I offered her the tiny house. Other women wouldn’t dare have their mother-in-law so close, but she swears she would find a place to stay where we could have our own space. “I’m not living in a tiny house longer than I have to,” she said to us over the phone, and Max said he didn’t blame her.
Max hasn’t spoken to Fred in months. The thought of Max changing his last name to Finch did cross my mind, but it was special that he wanted to and decided on his own, after discussing it with Olive.
We get to keep our name and carry on the Finch legacy, with my siblings.
“Let’s get to Ms. Martini’s birthday,” Max says, kissing my head. “And celebrate this.” He thumbs my new piece of jewelry, and I can’t help but grin like a fool.
We drive to the brewery, which I closed for Olive’s family birthday. She had a friends birthday at the local skating rink, and I laughed as I watched my daughter skate backwards, showing off to her best friends, Kenzie and Brynn. The girls were so cute together.
Today is full of surprises, and it’s not over yet. My siblings and I have one planned for our parents.
We park in our usual spot, and we wait for Max to open our doors.
Olive slips her hand in one of Max’s, and Max takes my other one.
When we walk in, we’re greeted by Shiloh.
“So…” She leans to the side, trying to get a glimpse of my left hand.
I hold it up, and she screams.
She immediately starts crying and wraps me in a hug. Jackson, my brother, proposed to Shiloh a few months ago, and they’re planning an April wedding next year. She joked the other day that we should have a double wedding, and I pointed out Max hadn’t proposed yet. Shiloh immediately looked guilty so I knew it was coming, in some capacity.
“He did it,” Shiloh says excitedly to Jackson, who joins us. My brother looks happy, and it warms my heart how Shiloh helped him recover. If I think about their relationship too long, I will cry.
“Congratulations,” Jackson says, shaking Max’s hand. “You’re finally making an honest woman out of her.”
“Shut up,” I say, hitting Jackson in the gut. He lets out an oomph, and I hear Shiloh say, “You kinda deserved it.”
“I’m going to find Abigail,” Olive says, searching for her cousin. She runs off and disappears, first stopping at my mom to say hi.
Max’s boxes were barely unpacked when my daughter finally got a cousin, Abigail Katherine Finch. My brother Cam and Annie are the cutest parents and are already talking about getting pregnant again since Abigail is so easy.
“It’s a trick,” I told them, but they laughed it off.
Molly appears and takes me into a hug. “I’m so glad it’s you,” she says into my ear, and I want to cry all over again. Molly and I have had an opportunity to get to know each other, and we’ve become really close. She adores my mom, and I know they’ll become best buds.
“Thank you,” I say. “We’re really excited.”
“I decided I’m officially going to move,” Molly says, and Max hugs her so hard, she makes a sound. “It just makes sense. It would be nice to have seasons again and be close to my granddaughter.”
“You’re more than welcome to the tiny house.”
“Actually, I found another spot.”
“Molly is going to move into Jackson’s old apartment,” my mom says, wrapping her arm around Max’s mom’s shoulders. “It makes sense.”
“Mom, that job is still open for you if you want it,” Max says.
“Only part-time,” Molly says, sticking a finger up. “I want to enjoy being retired, single, and a grandma.”
My love opened his own dental practice in Goldheart, focusing on serving underprivileged folks, taking all types of insurance and working it out with patients who can’t afford it. Olive loves to hang out there and asked for a play dentist set for Christmas. It was a bitch to track down.
I ask him all the time if being a dentist is what he wants. My income can more than support us. He always reassures me that he loves being a dentist, but he wants to help folks too. It goes back to why he still wants to go to Costa Rica, and Olive has expressed interest in going when she’s old enough.
