I jump up to follow him, but he calls out, “No. Just. Hold on. I’ll be right back.”
Footsteps can be heard as he climbs the stairs, so I hop back onto the stool, patiently waiting. Tyler returns probably thirty seconds later with one hand behind his back. He knows how much I love when he gives me flowers, so my mind immediately goes to another beautiful bouquet. But when he produces a velvet box and drops to one knee in front of me, trembling hands go to cover my mouth. No fanfare, no one present but the love of my life and myself.
“I don’t know how to make this perfect.”
Through tears I choke out, “This is perfect.”
“There are few things I know to be true in life, Jo. And the one truth that’s glaringly obvious is that I need”—his voice breaks, and I place a hand on his cheek—“I need you as my wife. I love you, I love our kids. I want a boring life with you, full of dinners at home, reading quietly beside you, basketball games, and small-town life. We’ll have happy times and hard times. You’ll get mad at me a hundred times and I’ll be right there at your side. I want them all to be with you.”
He opens the box to reveal an enormous diamond ring. On either side of the diamond are smaller stones in various colors. Birthstone colors. Four, to be exact. My hands move to snatch it, and he snaps the box shut.
We both start laughing and he opens it again. “Patience, love. Will you marry me?”
I slide off the stool and fall into his arms curled up together on the kitchen floor.
“Yes, a thousand yesses.”
Tyler slides the ring onto my finger and his lips capture mine like we’ve got forever. And it looks like we finally do.
I’m roused from sleep when the bed shifts and Tyler positions himself, head between my thighs. Half-asleep, I prop myself up on my elbows, watching him through heavy lids as he lowers his mouth to me. His tongue strokes slow and unhurried, pausing every few seconds to press sweet, reverent kisses to my clit. I smile down at him, but when he takes my clit between his lips, I throw my head back onto the pillow.
My body responds to him on instinct, like it was made to be worshiped by him, and it doesn’t take long before my thighs are quaking from the surge of pleasure building inside me. His tongue stays steady, insistent, until stars burst across the backs of my eyelids.
Even as I pant through the aftermath, Tyler doesn’t rush. He draws soft strokes with his tongue, soothing me, coaxing me back down. Only once I’ve found my breath does he crawl up the bed and fold me into his arms, tucking me against the steady beat of his heart. I’m certain when I drift back to sleep there’s a smile on my face, knowing this is what forever feels like.
“We need to tell the kids.”
We’re still in bed, limbs tangled, all morning breath and bed hair. Early morning light spills in around the curtains, and I swear I’ll never get tired of this view: Tyler half-smiling, eyes soft, the weight of his love so easy to feel now that I’ve finally stopped resisting it. I reach to trace his smile with my fingertip before pressing my lips to his.
“I don’t want to wait,” I add. “We’ll tell the kids, our friends and family, and as soon as Penny and Austin are back, I want to marry you. Here at our house.”
As soon as the awards ceremony was over—where Austin and Penny’s song won Song of the Year, might I add—Austin whisked her away to Scotland for a whirlwind honeymoon. They’ll be there for two weeks, and I can’t get married without her here.
Tyler smiles and presses a kiss to my forehead. “Have I told you today I love you?
I nod, and he kisses the apples of my cheeks. “Well, I also like how your mind works. We’ll get married as soon as we can. I need to talk to my lawyer about Jay, too.” He pauses, eyes flicking to mine. “About that.”
I lift a brow, and he goes on.
“What about last names?”
I wave a dismissive hand, making thepshhsound.
Tyler waits patiently for more of an explanation.
“Abby and Jay have different last names, as you know. I couldn’t bear to give Abby another man’s name, so when I married Chad and had Jay…it always made her feel like the odd one out. Fast forward to our divorce, I couldn’t stand to keep his name. So I went back to my maiden name.”
Tyler nods slowly. “But that left Jay the odd man out.”
“Exactly. But I think both kids would want your last name. It might be weird at school for them, but friends and teachers will adjust. They might surprise me, but I’ve got a feeling they’d want us to all match.”
Tyler smiles at this, and we lie together for at least another hour, planning out how we’ll tell the kids, and possible dates for our wedding. If it was up to me I’d do it next weekend, but we do have a few arrangements to make, like getting his parents back here. Which prompts another question.
“Why don’t we keep my house? The payment is low and that way your mom and dad will have somewhere to stay when they visit.”
Tyler’s eyes flick away from mine and something in his expression shifts.
“What’s that look for?” I ask.
