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Unable to stop myself, I buried my face in his chest,held on to him, and took several slow, deep breaths. I didn’t want to cry.
This man was everything I didn’t know I needed in my life.
Banks gave me some time to pull myself together. A minute or two later, he decided to lighten the mood. “You know, just because I’m not ready to make a baby right now doesn’t mean I’m not interested in practicing.”
I smiled against his chest, pulled my head back to look up at him, and searched his handsome face. “I love you, Banks.”
“I love you, too.”
“Kiss me and show me.”
So, that’s what he did.
Banks kissed me and showed me just how much he loved me. And though we weren’t ready for it to happen just yet, Banks proved he really didn’t need the baby making practice, because everything he did was already perfect.
EPILOGUE
Banks
Six weeks later
“This is spectacular.”
At my mom’s words, I couldn’t stop the smile from forming on my face. Then again, it hadn’t exactly been missing throughout the day today anyway.
While there was cause for some emotionally heavy moments, it had been a mostly happy occasion.
Today was Rhys’s first birthday, and we were celebrating with a party. Though I didn’t doubt my mom would have stepped up to the plate in a big way if I had needed her to, the only reason Rhys’s party was everything that it was, was all thanks to Lamise.
Without giving it a second thought, she dove into the planning and preparation, but her motives were always clear. She wasn’t doing it to try to take over and insert her wishes into anything. Lamise had done it all to take theload off of me. She’d researched or brainstormed, then came to me to ask what I had wanted.
I’d appreciated it, even if I hated that she didn’t seem to believe she was allowed to simply make the decision on her own. It became clear to me weeks ago when she’d wanted to discuss favors for the party with me and indicated Rhys was my son, so it was my decision.
Granted, that was the truth, but it bothered me to think that she believed she wasn’t anything more to him than just a nanny at this point.
Obviously, nobody could be who Violet was to Rhys. Violet had cared and nurtured him while he was growing in her belly. She brought him into this world, giving him life.
Though I intended to make sure he always knew who his mother was, the sad truth was that Rhys would never remember her.
He’d remember Lamise.
It was only a matter of time before he said that three-letter word to her, giving her the title I don’t think she was prepared to hear. Whether she believed it or not, Lamise would be the woman Rhys would call “Mom” one day soon.
Looking around at all that she’d done to make this party a success, it was a title I believed she deserved.
Apparently, my mom felt the same way.
“It is spectacular,” I confirmed. “Lamise really went above and beyond to make this happen.”
“She said this was all your ideas.”
I let out a laugh. “Yeah, right. They were only my ideas in the sense that she gave me options and I chose what I liked best. This was all Lamise.”
My mom and I looked away from one another and out at the party. While my mom was probably looking ateverything Lamise had done—the decorations, the food, and the desserts, to name a few—my eyes went to the woman who’d stolen my heart. She was standing there, talking animatedly with her mom, sister, and best friend. When she finished whatever it was she was sharing with them, her sister said something in response, and Lamise threw her head back, laughing.
Something swelled in my chest at the sight. There was something about her that was simply beautiful, inside and out.
“I’m so glad she’s in your life.”
