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I ignore the jump in my heartbeat as we help ourselves to the food. “Does there have to be an occasion?” I ask, knowing very well thereisa special occasion.
“I guess not,” Daria laughs before eyeing the food. “Looks and smells delicious,” she says, biting into a piece of pancake.
I tell myself to eat, but I can’t tear my gaze off of Daria. In her pajamas, blonde hair probably brushed out with her fingers as she got out of bed. Makeup free, slightly pink cheeks—she is easily the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and I feel like a damn lucky bastard that she’s all mine. Just like I’m all hers.
In the months we have been together, things have been going fucking perfectly. In the beginning, the media had been all over us, raving over my no longer bachelor status. They wanted to know about Daria, and when they did, there was another burst in the media that I was dating a single mom.
For safety reasons, I talked Daria into hiring a nanny for Elaine, because sending her to a public daycare could be a little dangerous. She had agreed, and we hired Agnes, a woman in her late thirties who has been nothing but an amazing help. Elaine likes her, and so does Daria, and she only ever comes when Daria is at work and I’m unable to watch Elaine. During the off season I only ever go to practice or to work out, so for the most part, I’m able to watch Elaine.
It took Daria a while to get used to the media attention, but she’s been handling it great. Her life, according to her, hasn’t been disrupted the way she thought it would, which is a great relief. I would’ve felt awful if things got too out of hand for her and Elaine. But I’ve got them, always.
As we eat, Elaine looks at me, and I can see her silent curiosity as to when I’m going to do it. I have to suppress a chuckle at her own excitement which mirrors mine. The longer I stare at Daria, though, the more the box burns a hole in the pocket of my sweatpants, and I know I can’t wait any longer.
“So, you may have been right,” I start. Daria looks at me after taking a sip of her coffee, arching an eyebrow. “There is a, uh, special occasion.”
“Yeah?” she asks, curiosity dancing in her blue eyes. “What is—”
She cuts herself off when I place the opened velvet box by her plate, the diamond ring winking back at her under the dining room light. I can hear Daria’s breath hitch with a gasp, her eyes widening while Elaine squirms excitedly in her seat.
My heart pounds and pounds, feeling it in every part of my body, but I keep my gaze on Daria. “I’ve been thinking about how and where I wanted to do this,” I begin, keeping my voice as steady as I can. Looking at Daria, I see the tears glistening in her eyes, the surprise on her face parting her lips. “And there’s nowhere I’d want to do this other than here, having breakfast with my two girls.” I glance at Elaine with a smile, who grins widely. Daria looks at her daughter, and another breath escapes her when she realizes that Elaine is in on this.
When Daria looks back at me, a new kind of light in her eyes, it fuels me forward. “I love you, Daria. I’m pretty sure I have since the moment I met you both in the elevator almost two years ago. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” With her, Elaine, and however many more kids we may have. “So—,” I go down on my knee and a sob escapes Daria, covering her mouth with her right hand as she looks down at me. Through my own stinging eyes, I ask, “Will you marry me?”
“Yes.” Her answer is instant, no hesitation, as she takes a breath and nods. She’s smiling through her tears. “Yes, of course, I will.”
My heart threatens to launch out of my chest, and I’m not even surprised that my fingers tremble as I grab the ring and slide it onto Daria’s finger. A perfect fit. She lets out another sob and cups my face, pulling me up to kiss me. She tastes sweet, like pancake syrup, coffee, with a hint of salt from tears. My head spins as it dawns on me that I’m kissing my fiancée, a kind of elation settling over me that I don’t think I’ve ever experienced before. In fact, IknowI haven’t.
“Yay! Mama and Daddy are getting married!” Elaine cheers and Daria and I pull away. Her blue eyes are wide as she looks at me because this is the first time she’s heard Elaine call me her dad, and the tears well up in her eyes all over again as Elaine jumps over to us with the widest grin on her face.
“That’s right, baby,” Daria says with a watery laugh, hand on top of Elaine’s head. Her eyes meet mine as she says to our daughter, “Mama and Daddy are getting married.”
I don’t stop my own tears from running down, my own grin wide and a little disbelieving as I hug the two girls close to me. Give me all of the fucking football sponsorships, accolades, trophies—none of it compares to this feeling right here. To hold Daria and Elaine, to be able to call them mine without any reservations.
Thisis what it’s all about. And I’ll be damned if I ever let go of them, of this little family I finally can call my own.
The end.
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