“Yeah, but your parents stayed at our house while we went to dinner. Tonight, the boys are staying with them.”
He glances at me as he drives. “It’s been a long day. They’re probably already asleep, and you’ll see them first thing in the morning. Hopefully not too early.”
I nod slowly. “It was thoughtful of your parents to offer. I’m looking forward to having a quiet dinner, just the two of us.” Olly’s been sporting a suit today, and he is so dang handsome. Seeing his smiling face on television made my heart pitter-patter. “Save some energy for after dinner,” I tease.
“Roger that.” He winks, and I feel myself blush.
Yes, I’m still blushing a year after we got pregnant.
He taps on the wheel. “Did you really bake me a pie?”
“It’s sitting on the counter in the kitchen. To make up for the one Johnny ate and to celebrate you getting drafted.”
“What if I hadn’t gotten selected today?”
“I had no doubt.” Honestly, I didn’t. “But if the apocalypse truly descended today, I would drizzle apple pie filling all over my body and let you lick it off to make you feel better.” Who am I kidding? I’d enjoy it thoroughly too.
He adjusts himself and gives me a heated look. “Can we still do that when we get home?”
Chuckling, I nod. “A celebratory licking,” I tease. “Really, Olly, I’m so proud of you. I can’t say that enough.”
We have so many things to plan in the next few months. I’m not sure how you move across the country with twins, but I guess we’re about to find out. After the draft this afternoon, we talked to my mom and asked if she and Frannie would like to move into our house. Mom can rent out the casita to cover her day-to-day bills, and Olly told her we’ll cover the property taxes and utilities so she doesn’t have to work so much. That way she can spend more time with Frannie.
I didn’t think I could love Olly more, but seeing how generous he is with my family definitely swells my heart. And he wasn’t lying when he said he was handy.
When my sweet boyfriend wasn’t training this spring, he helped me finish some major renovations, starting with the porch and front steps, which he and the guys ripped out and built from scratch.
Ironically, we found that the easiest way to get the boys to sleep was to rock them next to the dryer in the creepy basement when we were doing laundry. So Olly did a complete overhaul down there too, adding sheetrock to the unfinished walls, attaching a sturdier guardrail next to the steps, bringing down more lamps, and buying a second-hand recliner. It totally changed the vibe down there.
The only things we held off on were the exterior paint job and kitchen renovation we couldn’t afford, but my mom assured us she and my little sister don’t care about that.
Sienna told me I can continue working for her remotely. She’s kept me busy doing design projects for her and her father, which helped me pay for all of those doctor visits last year. Even though that hospital bill was astronomical, Olly’s been making small payments. And together, we’ve been staying afloat. No thanks to my work-study job, of course.
After discussing what happened with Sienna, she encouraged me to lodge a formal complaint since that firm illegally fired a pregnant woman. I’m not looking to win some big settlement. I just want to help protect any other students who find themselves in a similar situation down the road.
As Olly and I head back to Charming, an anxious ball forms in my stomach in anticipation of passing that sign from hell. Olly swears he’s not mad about it anymore, that he understands I had no say in what happened, but I still feel a twinge of remorse for the ugliness that went down between us in the aftermath.
Deliberately, I stare out the passenger window so I don’t have to look at it.
“Maggie, you okay?”
“Yup.” The trees whizzing by start to slow, and I realize there’s a crowd of people by that stupid billboard. “What’s… going… on?”
After pausing to look both ways, Olly crosses the dividing line in the road and parks the car so we’re facing the sign. Then he hops out and runs around to open my door.
I read the giant words on the billboard. Once. Twice. Three times.
Magnolia Morales, will you meet me at the altar? Those giant words are written above a photo of Olly in a tux, holding out a little black box.
He tugs me out of my seat, and I turn to find him on his knee before me.
“Maggie, my life is amazing. Some would say perfect. But I know the truth. I’m missing one key thing—having you as my wife. You keep me grounded in a way I never knew I needed. I love you in a way I never knew was possible. You and our boys possess my whole heart and soul. Would you do me the great honor of marrying me? I promise I will always let you hog the sheets.”
Those have to be the sweetest words I’ve ever heard. Except… “I don’t hog the sheets.”
He chuckles. “So you say.”
I grab his handsome face and lean over to kiss him. “We’ll still argue.”
