Total pages in book: 51
Estimated words: 48061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 240(@200wpm)___ 192(@250wpm)___ 160(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 48061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 240(@200wpm)___ 192(@250wpm)___ 160(@300wpm)
“It’s easy, Daze. Loving you is the easiest thing I ever did. So easy I never knew how to quit.”
“I’m glad you didn’t quit because I don’t want to live without you. I want to marry you as soon as we can. Okay?”
“I like a woman who knows what she wants. You’ve got to pick out stuff for Liam’s room at my house. Our house. Make sure we do what’s going to make it easier for him. And go to that ultrasound to see our new baby. It’ll be a few weeks probably. But if we can wait six years, what’s a few more weeks?”
She looks at her ring one more time and smiles. “I love it, and I love you. I’m done keeping secrets. For good.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” I say, kissing her lips.
“I get it now. I’m no good without you. I’ve needed you all these years and just wouldn’t admit it.”
“You have me now. And you’ll always have me.”
“That’s everything I could ever want. You, my babies, us being a family together. You’ve made all my dreams come true, Benny Falconari.”
“Not yet I haven’t. But give me a couple weeks and I will.”
EPILOGUE
DAISY - ONE YEAR LATER
Liam bursts in the door, talking a mile a minute about baseball tryouts.
“Easy, kiddo. Your sister’s asleep,” I say. “Go see Gram, and I’ll be in there in about fifteen minutes.”
I turn back to my client’s hair and finish highlighting. I love having my own shop. Benny wasn’t kidding when he said he’d make my dreams come true. He surprised me with this storefront in a pretty brick building near Liam’s school. Sasha works for me now, so I get to do what I love and work with my best friend. The best part is that we fixed up a back room so that it’s basically a nursery for Lily. I get to have her here with me and see her between clients and my mom watches her for me. Liam rides the bus here every day after school. It’s perfect.
When I finish with my client, she thanks me, books her next appointment and I change the sign to ‘closed’ because I’m done for the day. I listen to Liam tell me about baseball tryouts next week. I take the baby from my mom and kiss Lily’s chubby little cheeks. She gurgles and drools a little.
“Is Dad here yet?” Liam asks. I shake my head.
“He’s still at work. We’ll see him at home.”
“No, he’s coming here. He told me this morning. Hey, I heard the bell. I bet that’s him.”
Liam is off like a shot and the next thing I know, the little playroom in the back of my salon is crowded with all the people I love. My mom picks up toys and puts them in a basket while I give Benny a kiss.
“I thought I’d take off early so we can have a family night,” he says. “Everybody in the car. Let’s see if we can get home before the food’s delivered.”
“Ooh, is it pizza?” Liam asks.
“You’ll see when you get there,” Benny says.
That doesn’t slow Liam down at all now. He peppers his dad with questions all the way home where we arrive just before the UberEats driver. Mom takes Lily inside while we collect the food—Liam’s favorite pizza along with cucumber salad and bulgogi for us. Liam dashes ahead of us into the house carrying the pizza. I take a moment to snuggle under my husband’s arm and smile up at him.
“This is perfect,” I say to him.
“The bibimbap? Or the timing of the food delivery?” he says.
“All of it. Everything. This. Our home and family and getting to be together. My own salon. Our son and our daughter—you and me. I can’t seem to believe it. Sometimes I wake up and think I dreamed it, that it’ll be just Liam and me in our dreary apartment in Seattle again. That nothing ever changed.”
“It’s real, Daze. We made it happen and did the hard work to make things right. You deserve this. And maybe one of these days you’ll believe me when I tell you that. I love you.”
“I love you back. And I’m going to spend every day trying to make you as happy as you’ve made me.”
“Too late, you did that a long time ago. When you said yes.”
The End