Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82453 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82453 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
“Tel,” Cam whispers. “What’s happening?”
He’s almost the same height as Tel, and their hair color is a close match. They are one of the most perfect couples I’ve ever met.
Telford drops to one night, pulling a heavy gasp from Cam.
“The day I met you, I saw something I had never seen before,” Tel says with nothing but love in his voice. “I saw my future.”
Cam nods.
“I’ve gone over this a million times in my mind, and I couldn’t get it quite right until someone told me to let my heart speak for me.” Tel smiles as he pops open the ring box in his hand. “So, here goes.”
Cam’s hands jump to cover his mouth.
“When I wake up and see you next to me, I consider myself the luckiest man alive, and when I go to bed at night, and I know you love me, I can do anything. I love you, Cameron. I want to be your husband and stand with you through the good times and the bad times. I want to be a dad with you. I’m asking you if you’ll please marry me, Cam.”
Tears cloud my vision, but I can still make out Cameron nodding his head, and his whispered, “Yes.”
He drops to his knees, too, and as Tel slides the ring on his finger, I glance at the man who owns my heart.
He stares at me, and without saying one word, I can feel just how deeply he loves me.
EPILOGUE
Rook
Three Months Later
I kiss the beautiful butterfly tattoo on Carrie’s skin. “I love you so much.”
Her fingers thread through my hair. “I love you more.”
Huffing out a laugh, I crawl up her body until my hands are pressed into the mattress on either side of her shoulders. “Not possible.”
“I think it is,” she whispers.
I know she’s tired. We spent part of last night at Declan and Abby’s apartment. They had a gender reveal party that involved cake pops and my daughter being the happiest little girl on earth since she was the one who bit into the cake pop that revealed whether my best friend would be a girl dad or a boy dad in just a few months.
Maura volunteered to handle the gender reveal part of the party, so she baked and prepared enough white cake to make dozens of cake pops. But nestled in the box of those was one colored cake pop.
Everyone in attendance took turns taking a bite of a cake pop. Sean and his wife were there with their infant daughter. Holden showed up along with Ava, Declan’s sister, and her fiancé, Harrison. Abby and Carrie’s folks arrived with Declan’s mom and dad. All four were decked out in white T-shirts stamped with messages about them being future grandparents.
Carrie’s mom and stepdad have grown fond of Kirby. I was the first to visit them alone one day when Carrie was at the lab. I stopped by with flowers and a case of beer and introduced myself as the man in love with their daughter.
Hugs followed, along with an afternoon filled with stories about Carrie. I saved each one to memory, and when I left, it was with an invitation to visit them a week later with their daughter and mine.
I did that, and we’ve seen them at least every couple of weeks since.
“I still can’t believe Abby will have a son,” Carrie whispers. “And his name, Rook.”
Her voice cracks with the same emotion that overwhelmed her last night when her sister stood in front of her and announced that her son will be named Gilbert Stetson Wells.
Gilbert after my love and Stetson for Declan’s late grandfather.
It’s a fitting tribute to two people who have played pivotal roles in baby Gilbert’s life.
“He’ll be a remarkable boy,” I tell her. “How can he not be with a name like that?”
She laughs. “Abby told me that if it was a girl, her middle name would have been Carrie. That still was such a gift to hear.”
“Your sister adores you,” I tell her something that is blatantly obvious.
Dragging a hand over her cheek, she smiles. “We should get up before Kirbs.”
“We have time,” I say to stall her.
“She gets up at the crack of dawn, Rook,” she reminds me. “It’s almost six, and you know that I like to make her breakfast as soon as she’s awake.”
I do know that.
Whenever Carrie spends the night when I have Kirby, she takes it upon herself to prepare my daughter’s breakfast and packs her a lunch for kindergarten if needed.
Kirby loves her as much as I do, and when Chesca dropped off Kirby one day two months ago, and I introduced her to Carrie, the two women hugged.
Something unspoken passed between them, but I sense it involved their shared love for our daughter.
“One more kiss,” I tempt her with a trail of kisses over her neck.