Crystal chuckled as she adjusted the blinds to let more sunlight into the room. “Then I guess it’s a good thing you’re a man. Besides, I can just take a nap whenever I get tired. Anyway, how did the meeting go with Mr. Truman?”
“I have excellent news. The Truman's are purchasing four homes in Hawaii, all of them on the same property, and turning them into a family estate.”
“That’s wonderful,” she said while unpacking another box. “They’re such a close family that I’m sure they’ll get a lot of use out of them. If we play our cards right, we might even be able to tag along on one of their vacations. Gosh, just thinking about Hawaii makes me wish that I were there right now. Not that I don’t enjoy living here, of course. I’m officially jealous.”
I cleared my throat. “One of the homes is for us, Crystal.”
She dropped a box of toys and looked up at me. “Wait. What? Why would Mr. Truman give us one of the homes?”
I wrapped my arms around her. “Because he views me as his third son, you’re practically a sister to Annie, and Julianna, and I’ve worked my ass off making them millions of dollars. That’s why, dear.”
Crystal gave me a long, passionate kiss and then pulled back. “Oh my God, that’s wonderful!”
“Mr. Truman insisted that we join them, and I know how much you love it there.”
After we hugged each other for a bit, she went back to unpacking. “This is wonderful news, Gavin. I always felt so at peace in Hawaii. It’s not just the climate, either. The people are so friendly, and the food is unbelievable! Don’t you agree?” Crystal was back to herself and didn’t let me get a word in edgewise. “We still have to go back to Moldova, though. I googled some recipes for Moldovan pie because I have the biggest craving for one.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at how excited Crystal was about our new life together. “Maybe we can make a Moldovan pie this weekend. Just give me the list of ingredients, and I’ll pick them up."
As she continued to speak, I couldn’t help but notice how beautiful and adorable she was at the same time. Crystal was going on and on about how life with the new baby would be, what it’ll be like to vacation with the Truman’s, and how everything seemed to be coming together at once.
When she took a moment to collect her thoughts, I reached my hand out to her. “Come with me.”
Crystal looked surprised, but took my hand and walked out into our garden. “What’s going on, Gavin?”
I got down on my knee and pulled out the engagement ring from the jeweler. It was platinum with a sapphire stone, which I knew she’d want since it’d remind her of the crystal-blue waters of Hawaii. Crystal looked down at me with her mouth wide open, and as she stood there in her yoga pants and t-shirt, I had never been more sure of anything in my entire life.
“Crystal, I’ve wanted to ask you this for a while now. Before I do, though, I want you to know that I’m going to be the best dad in the world. Our child will never want for anything, and I’ll never let work get in the way of family time. Before I met you, I just assumed that I’d be a lifelong bachelor. Now that I’ve been with you, though, I can’t imagine not having you in my life.” I held the ring up to her. “Will you marry me?”
She began crying harder than I had ever seen her cry before. “Yes, Gavin. Yes, I will marry you!”
I placed the ring on her finger, picked her up, and kissed her in the middle of the garden.
“You make me so happy, Crystal, and I cannot wait to become your husband and the best dad ever to our child.”
My life was finally complete.
Epilogue
`
Icouldn’t believe how quickly the past year and a half had passed. Gavin and I had married shortly after our son, Gideon, was born. After the first few months, my pregnancy had been worry free. In fact, if anyone asked, I would have to admit I wouldn’t mind having another baby.
It was funny how Mother Nature worked. It didn’t take long for a mom to forget all the aches and pains that went along with bearing a child, and before you knew it, you were pregnant again. Gavin and I had decided not to use birth control and just let nature take its course, but so far, I hadn’t conceived.
Looking back, I remembered how the sunshine had blessed us on our wedding day. The outdoor ceremony in River Valley’s downtown square was the perfect place to exchange our vows since it was close to where we had met. Our wedding had been the talk of the town. I had lost count of the number of guests that had come. It seemed most of the clients from the yoga studio, along with family and friends, were eager to wish us well. Gavin even mentioned hitting my car in his vows, and all of our guests thought it was a funny first encounter.
Today, Julianna and Jake had joined us in Hawaii, along with Caley and the two boys, which included their two-year-old son, Aaron. Annie and Richard were here too, with Addison and their son, Rick. We were all relaxing on the beach in front of our new villas, now a part of the Truman Estate.
Mr. and Mrs. Truman had already arrived here a week ago ahead of the rest of us. Mrs. Truman had insisted they come first to make sure food was ordered, and all the individual homes were ready for our first visit.
The gals were gathered around on beach blankets under umbrellas, watching the kids play as we carefully shielded them from the sun. It seemed we were continuously applying sunblock to the toddlers’ little arms.
Annie had spent the morning telling us how well her holistic line of products was selling, and I was thrilled to have just secured a building not far from her studio for my new practice. Even though I would be cutting back on teaching yoga, Annie was happy that I’d be featuring her products in my office. We weren’t working together as much, but we were closer than ever before.
Not too long after we were married, Mr. Truman had given Gavin a considerable raise and a promotion. He was now just below Richard in the company, and I was proud of Gavin for working his way up.
Mr. and Mrs. Truman were so happy that their family had grown. They had never missed a birthday party or a school function that included their grandchildren. I was blessed to be a part of the family that I had once criticized for being a bunch of rich billionaire snobs.
