“Zoo? What the zoo?” Lolly asked.
“Where the animals are, don’t you remember, Sis?” Lenny looked at his two-year-old sister like she was crazy, and I couldn’t help but laugh to myself.
“Yes, you know, the giraffes and elephants. Remember Lolly?” Adilene said to her daughter, who nodded her head happily.
“Mama, come. And Shaw?” Lolly asked.
“Not this time, sweetie. Nana wants to spend some time with just you and Lenny. She’s going to take you out to dinner for pizza and ice cream, too.”
Lenny’s face lit up. “That’s my favorite dinner!”
“Me too!” Lolly cheered.
After a delicious breakfast of Adilene’s homemade cinnamon rolls, we cleaned up the living room of all the toys. Deb stopped by to get her grandkids, looking very happy to see me.
“Still here, I see, Shaw?”
I chuckled. “Yes, ma’am. You know, the roads and such.”
Deb’s eyes twinkled. “Mmhmm, yes, the roads were terrible.” She kissed and hugged her daughter, whispering in her ear something that made Adilene blush. I could only imagine what she said.
When she left with the kids, I pulled Adilene into my arms and kissed her. “Your mom is a hot ticket.”
“She is, that one. Always keeps me on my toes.”
“Like mother, like daughter?” I asked before kissing her jaw.
“I think you might need to find out.”
“Oh, angel, I plan to. I plan to find out everything. We have forever to get to know one another.”
“Yes, yes, we do.”
EPILOGUE
Adilene
One year later
Shaw remainedtrue to his word. We spent our time getting to know each other through proper dates, fun trips, and adventures with the kids. And after four solid months of dating, Shaw asked me to be his girlfriend, officially.
Two months later, he moved in, tired of paying rent on a cabin he wasn’t often at. Most nights, he ended up in my bed after we became official, so why pay two rents when we can focus on joining our lives and maybe upgrade to a bigger place?
Which was exactly what we did. Last night, we signed papers on our new cabin, the log design being hand-built by the construction crew in town. We even had planned for a custom in-law suite for my mother. Her own little place right next to ours. They should complete it by spring, and we should be able to move in by June at the latest.
We chose to go with a five-bedroom cabin, giving our family room to grow. In addition, we have an office on the first floor, along with a guest room, separate from the five-bedroom total. And we would have a finished basement, a family entertainment room with a bathroom attached. We opted to add a large pantry in the custom kitchen, and a big eat-in kitchen would expand into the dining room. We added the laundry room to the main bathroom on the second floor, and I was looking forward to that the most. No more trips up and down the stairs with heavy loads.
The kids were beyond happy, their faces lighting up whenever we talked about their new rooms. How one year had changed our lives so much, I would’ve never imagined, but here we were, on a completely different path, and one I thought I’d only get to dream about.
Today was Christmas Eve, and like always, I was out shopping for last-minute gifts. But this time, my boyfriend accompanied me, and I tucked my wallet safely in my purse.
We shopped and laughed, deciding on what to cook for dinner, as we wanted to make new traditions for Christmas Eve. As we walked through the grocery store and into the meat section, I browsed the ribeye steak when suddenly, a sharp wave of nausea came over me. I covered my mouth and looked around for the nearest garbage can as my lunch made its way back up my throat.
Oh no.
Meat never grosses me out.
Except when I’m pregnant.
