“Yep,” he licked his mouth.
“Well, let me get that off for you.” Standing on her tiptoes, she thrust her lips against his, sending a shockwave of pleasure straight to his groin. Too bad the doctor said it would be a few more weeks until they could have sex. “Mmmm. You taste delicious.”
The late afternoon turned into evening, and an exhausted Tim found himself in the family room recliner showing Jo-Jo one of the new picture books she’d received from her father. She laid her sugary head against him, tired from all the people and activity, slowly turning the thick cardboard pages of the book with her dimpled hands. One by one, his friends and family said goodbye, and the household quieted down with only the low volume of a broadcaster calling the Atlanta Braves game on the television amidst a light snore coming from Mr. Southers who was passed out on the sofa. Jessica and her mother cleaned up the remnants of the party as the girls played outside, catching fireflies in the fenced backyard under Elizabeth’s watchful eye. When Jo-Jo’s hands went limp, and her tiny head rolled across his chest in slumber, Tim closed his eyes and sighed contentedly.
***
“That is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen in my life,” Elizabeth said, looking over at Tim and Jo-Jo sound asleep on the recliner.
“I know. He gets tired easily. The medication doesn’t help. I’m glad he made it through the party.”
The two friends were sitting at the kitchen table that looked out into the living room, coloring with crayons on sheets of paper the Kaufman girls had abandoned before going down to the basement playroom.
“I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me who he was.” Elizabeth’s eyebrow arched as she concentrated on her drawing.
“I said I was sorry. You know I would have told you in a heartbeat if he had given me permission.”
“I know. It was just surprising, that’s all. Your little hints were good, but never in a million years would I have guessed he was Tim Ryan, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. This is straight out of one of my romance novels.”
Jessica couldn’t help but giggle. “Well, don’t be thinkin’ I’m going to give you details from the bedroom.”
“Oh, come on!”
“Nope. That’s between Tim and me.”
Elizabeth laid her crayon down, a look of seriousness crossing her face. “For what it’s worth, I’m so incredibly happy for you. You of all people deserve an epic love story.”
Jessica’s lips turned up in a smile as she realized she had been drawing numerous hearts on her page. “Epic is an understatement.”
The girls were tuckered out from the long day, and it didn’t take long to get them bathed and ready for bed. Jessica was thankful for the extra help from her mother, ready to retire to the guest bedroom on the main level with Tim by her side. When she came back downstairs, she was surprised to see him sitting at the kitchen table.
“You’re awake,” she said happily. “Did you have a nice nap? You slept through all of us clamoring to get the girls upstairs. I was afraid we’d wake you.”
His emerald gaze crinkled in a smirk. “I was knocked out. Thanks for letting me sleep.”
Jessica noticed he still had a pink crayon in his hand and giggled. “Have you been coloring too? It’s kind of hard not too with all this mess on the table.”
“I have.”
“Let me see,” she curiously insisted.
Tim froze for a moment, and she watched his Adam’s apple bob in his throat as he swallowed before passing her the sheet of paper across the table. Her forehead creased with concern and she looked down at the familiar page covered in hearts she had drawn earlier. In the right-hand corner were two words that caused her heart to flip in her chest. Her eyes darted to his face and back to the paper several times.
“Is this for real?” she uttered, her breathless tone an indication she was about to come undone.
“It’s as real as it’s ever gonna get, baby.”
Her hand shook as she held the paper and watched Tim slowly get up and come around the table. He kneeled in front of her and held her hand.
“Marry me, Jessica. Make all my dreams come true.”
Placing the sheet of paper carefully on the table, she lowered herself to the floor and gently ran both hands across the sides of his knitted beanie, holding his head. Her throat had closed up, and she was on the verge of another emotional cry-fest as she realized her fairy tale was coming true. She bit her lower lip and nodded.
“I need to hear you say it.” His green eyes were gorgeous, his gaze imploring. She was ready to dive into his forest.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Say it again.”
