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“Are you suggesting that you received sexual favors when I was an intern?”
“I’m just guessing that wasn’t a treat you gave anyone else at the firm,” I teased, nipping at her bottom lip.
“Only you, Rick,” she said, and I slipped my tongue back in her mouth.
“Always,” I whispered to her. “Always.”
EPILOGUE
HAILEY - TWO YEARS LATER
“Ithink I’ve almost got it,” I said, chewing my thumb nail as I fretted over the adjective in the slogan I was working on.
I ran my hand over my rounded belly and smiled. It had been a whirlwind couple of years, and I had everything I ever wanted. It was hard to believe things could change so quickly. I had gone from being an overwhelmed waitress and college student to an intern in love with her professor, to now. A college graduate, full-time member of the creative team at REM, and ready to welcome our baby girl any day now. But most of all, there was Rick. Making me arepas, rubbing my tired shoulders, listening to me practice my presentations, putting up dozens of tiny pink butterfly decals on the nursery wall just the way I wanted them. Holding me in his arms every night, making sure I know that I’m the most important thing in his life.
Rick Esperanza was all I ever wanted, and more than I ever dreamed I could have.
I pressed my hand into the small of my back trying to rub away the ache there when a sharp pain sliced through my abdomen, making me double over. It was time. I eased into a chair and called for Rick. Slogan or no slogan, it was time to put work aside and get down to the business of having our baby.
When we got to the hospital it was a flurry of activity. Fully dilated, I was too far along for an epidural, so we were rushed into a delivery room. I never dreamed it could go so fast. Waves of blinding pain, breathless panting, and there was Rick, holding my hand through it all, feeding me ice chips when I wanted them, holding me up and helping me bring our daughter into the world. In three pushes, she was here, and her daddy cut the cord. Red faced and shrieking, she was wrapped in a cotton blanket and laid on my chest. I wept, kissed her head, and cradled her close as Rick held both of us in his protective arms. I never wanted to let either of them go, not for one second.
Later, I slept for a while, and when I stirred awake to the sound of voices—Kyle and Drake and their wives fussing over baby Rosa, I saw my mom by my side, felt her wipe my face with a damp cloth and smooth my hair back. I swallowed grateful tears as she kissed my forehead and told me that her granddaughter was beautiful. She helped me adjust my bed so I could sit up more, gave me my hairbrush and straightened my blankets. Rick was at my side instantly, asking if I needed anything.
“I don’t know—an ice pack? Some ibuprofen? A shower?” I joked wearily.
“How about a husband?” he said, reaching into his pocket and taking out a velvet box.
Just like that, he flipped it open and revealed a gleaming oval solitaire set in platinum. I stared at it and then looked at him, disbelieving.
“Now that you’re Rosa’s mommy, you have to take me seriously,” he teased. “When I say that I love you more than anything on this Earth, and I never want to even imagine my life without you. Hailey, you are the most brilliant, caring, beautiful person I’ve ever known, and I’d be honored if you’d be my wife.”
“Yes!” I blurted out, reaching for him. He slid onto the bed beside me and wrapped his arms around me, kissing my lips softly.
“My beautiful wife,” he murmured, putting the engagement ring on my finger. I couldn’t help the tear that fell down my cheek, and he kissed it away. I never knew it was possible to be this happy.
The End
