‘You are soimpatient,’ she complained.
What? She wasn’t making sense.
‘You just had to wait a few hours,’ she insisted cryptically.
‘For what?’ he asked confused.
‘And then it would have been a surprise.’
‘What would have been a surprise, Maria? Honestly, you—’
This time he cut his own words off as he realised that she was grinning and that her eyes were dancing, glittering in the sun light just like the lake behind them.
Goosebumps broke out across his skin as he realised what she was saying.
‘You’re pregnant,’ he said, lurching upwards and taking her with him so that she sat in his lap. ‘We’re pregnant!’ he yelled.
‘You’re pregnant?’ was echoed by several voices at the same time, as children and adults came to join them on the grass.
Everyone was there, the two other families having arrived one after the other.
Ivy and Erin, arm in arm, looked as if they were going to burst with excitement. Enzo and Antonio, each holding more children than probably safe, looked utterly delighted, but Micha had eyes only for his wife.
‘You’re pregnant,’ he whispered, framing her face with his hands, knowing that she was the most precious thing in the world to him in that moment.
‘I am.’
‘I love you,’ he said. ‘I always have and I always will. Only you. For the rest of my life.’
‘You are my home, Micha Rufina. My home, my heart, my hope and my soulmate. I will choose you every day, over and over and over again. You willalwaysbe my choice.’
And Micha knew it as a truth that kept them together through the hard times, the stressful times, the worrying times, but also the best of times. He was her choice, and she was his heart for the rest of their very happy lives.
