Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 83368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
“Of course,” she said softly. “Let’s go home.”
* * *
When they got back, they showered until they were all warmed up and then cuddled in her bed, sharing coffee and just enjoying being in love and being with each other.
He leaned over and said, “I’m not going to scare you by asking too soon, but get used to the idea that one day I will. And before I even ask, I want you to think about how you’d feel marrying someone with one of the riskiest jobs on or off the planet.”
She rolled over and kissed him, and the smile bloomed all over her face. “Haven’t you noticed? I am a bona fide risk-taker. We’ll make it work.”
He reached over and ran his hand down her hair, tucking it behind one ear. “Bad things can happen. I’ve had to make my peace with that in order to be an astronaut.”
She shook her head at him. “Love is risk. The biggest risk of all. I never thought I could find a man like you. I never thought I could love this deeply. And loving you this way, I understand that one day you could be in a rocket, and it might not go well. You know that I could be on a wave, and it might not go well either. But that’s why we’re perfect for each other, because we understand and accept that risk.”
He pulled her close to him until her head was resting on his chest, and she could hear the slow, steady beat of his heart. He said, “You know, I had an epiphany the other day.”
She glanced up at him. “You did? Epiphanies don’t happen every day.”
Hersch smiled. “This one was pretty profound. I realized that I’d been fooling myself. Maybe all my grand talk about not wanting to marry and have children wasn’t about leaving anyone behind. Maybe I was the one who was afraid of being left behind.”
They stared into each other’s eyes for a long time, and then she kissed him tenderly. “I love you. That is all I know, and right now, it’s enough.”
He said, “And that’s everything.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
When they walked into Betsy and Howie’s house for the post-wedding breakfast, Mila couldn’t believe how efficient Crystal and her staff had been. It was hard to find any evidence that there’d been a wedding there yesterday. There were still a couple of nice, big flower arrangements, and to her delight, still a bit of chocolate cake left that she’d have to find a way to take home. But apart from Archer and Tessa not being there, it was just like one of the usual Davenport family breakfasts. Erin was cutting up fruit. Finn was frying bacon. Howie had put on his big barbecue apron and was asking everybody how they wanted their eggs.
Mila got involved making pancakes, and Betsy said to Herschel that Tessa’s job was squeezing the fresh orange juice, but since she wasn’t there, could he possibly take over? So he piled in with the rest of them while they talked about how amazing the wedding had been, all the fun things that had happened, how happy the bride and bridegroom had looked, how proud Margaret had been to be the instigator of the whole thing.
Then Jay Malone arrived.
Erin looked surprised and flustered to see him. She said, “I didn’t know you’d be here for breakfast.”
He came in, all bluster, and immediately went up and kissed her cheek. “Miss me?”
She shook her head and went back to chopping melon.
Jay boomed out in his big voice, “I got the kids to the plane this morning. As she was boarding, Tessa made sure to tell me how grateful she is to you and the family and how perfect the wedding was.”
“It really was,” Betsy said with a sigh. “I can’t wait to plan the next one.”
Mila glanced up at Hersch and found him looking at her with a very intimate smile.
Erin must have caught the moment, because she said, “I have a feeling you won’t have to wait too long.”
Then Jay looked from Mila to Hersch and back again. “Are you kidding me? Our man Herschel finds true love? Could there be a better ending to your life story? Come on, Hersch, tell me you’re in for the biopic.”
He glanced around at the family. Nick was snickering, and Finn was shaking his head. Even Betsy had to turn away to hide her laughter. Finally, Hersch answered, “Sorry, Jay. The movie’s already been made.”
Mila snorted with laughter, and behind her, Erin giggled. Howie let out his booming laugh. Jay looked around the kitchen and shook his head slowly. “No. You did not make one of those cheesy home movies.”
It was Nick who answered him, grinning from ear to ear. “We sure did. Come on, you’ve got to see this man make a s’more on film.”