AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Bart and Liam are doing what they do best,” she giggles, “Which means hovering above Lisa like hawks.”
“Clancy is like that with the girls, too,” I confide. “He never wants to be away from them, and with two babies, you know what they say: it’s more than twice the work, it’s three times!”
“Oh, I can’t even imagine,” Alyssa gushes. “We have three adults taking care of one child and I’m always exhausted. I don’t know how you and Clancy do it.”
I smile and sigh a little. “You know how it is,” I say. “We love them so much that it’s worth losing a little sleep.”
Alyssa nods.
“That’s true. Lisa’s old enough that she likes to get out more, so the four of us are always at the jungle gym.”
I frown slightly. “Yeah, I was going to ask you about that.”
“Ask me what?”
I hesitate a bit.
“Well, do the other moms there give you weird looks when they realize when you’re with two men? I mean, it’s not exactly a traditional relationship.”
Alyssa purses her mouth and nods, her brown curls waving.
“Yeah, they do,” she admits. “The secretive looks do get annoying, especially when I can tell that they’re gossiping about us. Why do you ask? Do people do the same to you and Clancy because of the age gap?”
“Definitely,” I confess. “Even worse is that some of his coworkers and family friends actually know that I’m technically his stepdaughter. We’ve stopped trying to explain ourselves, honestly, because it’s not my job to get people to accept our relationship. But still, it’s annoying to know that people are talking about us! It gets under my skin! Why does it matter to them anyways? We’re happy, okay?”
Alyssa nods. “Exactly! And who are they to judge us, anyways? Besides, non-traditional relationships are gaining popularity these days, what with all these different sexual identities like being pansexual and asexual. Maybe someday, we’ll be the boring ones, instead of the girls who are seen as ‘pushing the limits.’”
“That would be a dream,” I agree. “Oh my God, I can’t wait until that happens.”
But then, there’s the sound of clinking from the front of the room and we look up to see my gorgeous husband tapping the side of a wineglass with a fork. His black hair falls in a comma over one eye, and he’s wearing a blue shirt that highlights his broad shoulders.
“You married a stud,” Alyssa whispers, nudging me playfully.
“That I did,” I say happily, clasping my hands over my belly. But why is Clancy making a speech right now?
The crowd quiets, and my husband smiles broadly, flashing even white teeth.
“I wanted to thank everyone for coming to our daughters’ party today,” he says. “It means a lot to us that you’d be here to celebrate the growth of our family. As you know, we were blessed with one little girl biologically, and the other we were fortunate enough to adopt from Cambodia. I never thought I’d be a father to two little souls, but it’s been amazing and beyond my wildest dreams.” Everyone cheers at this point.
“Anyways,” Clancy growls. “I just want to take this opportunity to thank my gorgeous wife, Selena. As you know, good things come in threes, and my three came all at once: Selena, Esme, and then Emme too. It was a miracle. Can you please come up, Sel?”
I gasp and make my way to where my husband is as he pulls me in close for a kiss.
“I love you baby,” I murmur.
“I love you too,” he whispers against my lips. Then he turns to the crowd again.
“Anyways, as you know, Selena and I married in a quickie City Hall ceremony because we had an adoption application in the works at the time, but now, I want to give the woman I love the proposal of her dreams.”
With that, he drops to one knee. I gasp and take a shocked step backward, my hands covering my mouth in anticipation and excitement. I can’t believe it. Is this really happening? My husband takes my hand in his and presses a kiss to the palm.
“Selena, you’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever known, and I’m the luckiest man in the world. You’re already my wife, but I just want to ask again: will you marry me? Will you do me the honor of continuing to be my companion for life?”
By this point, tears are streaming from my eyes, and I can’t stop smiling. I nod furiously.
“Yes!” I manage. “Yes, of course!”
Our friends and family clap in celebration as Clancy slips a ring onto my finger. He knows that my tastes are fairly subdued, so rather than getting me an enormous diamond, he opted for an intricately detailed ring with a pearl in the center surrounded by small emeralds. It’s beautiful, and I tear my eyes away from it to kiss him as he stands from his kneeling position.
