I laughed, pulling her mouth to mine, pressing my lips against hers. When I pulled back, she was smiling. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that,” I told her.
I knew in that moment that God was always with us, even when we might not know it.
“Really? You’re not freaked out?” she asked, looking shyly up at me.
“No way. Having a son named Noah with you is now officially on my bucket list,” I told her.
She smiled. “Well, slow down. We’d have to get married first.”
We would. And even though it felt crazy, I poured out what was on my heart to her.
“I’d marry you tomorrow if you’d have me, Hannah with two N’s,” I told her.
She looked surprised at my words, but her words shocked me even more. “I’d have you, Jack.”
The unworthiness I’d battled for years tried to creep back up in that moment, but I pushed it down. Hannah was a gift from God, and you didn’t deny gifts from above.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
HANNAH
Two years later
Jack and I got married the summer after he’d saved my life. He was released from probation and moved to Willow Harbor with me. We fixed up my little two-bedroom house, and Jack got an office in town, where he dedicated himself solely to charity work. He’d sold his half of the company to Jason, and now he was going to spend the rest of his life-giving ninety percent of his wealth away.
“How crazy would it be if we named him Noah but with two N’s,” Jack said as he came into the office with a bowl of freshly washed grapes.
I burst into laughter, peering down at my swollen belly. “Did you hear that? Your dad is trying to get you beat up in school.”
Jack smiled, kneeling on one knee to kiss my belly and then looking up at me. “Did Chloe send the list of houses?”
I nodded. “I was waiting for you.”
Chloe was still Jack’s assistant, working remotely from Seattle. She and I had become good friends. Jack and I were looking for a bigger house now that I was six months pregnantwith our son. The doctor said my one kidney shouldn’t be a problem since I was young and healthy, so I was looking forward to the nesting stage.
“My opinion doesn’t matter.” Jack waved me off. “Get whatever house you want.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re always doing whatever I want, which is very sweet, but this is our home, where we are going to raise our son. I want your opinion, too.”
He smiled at me. “Okay, well, I’d love to live on the lake, so I told Chloe to include some of those.”
I hadn’t told Jack about that part of my dream-vision. That I’d seen us living in a white house on the lake, but now it came to my mind.
“I love the lake,” I agreed.
He sat next to me and opened the email. Together, we scrolled through the options while Jack made sure to keep one hand on my belly, giving it small, circular rubs. I munched on the grapes and watched as he stopped at a beautiful white house on the lake.
“What about this one?” he asked and I grinned.
I scrolled through the pictures, and when I got to the back of the house, the one that faced the lake, tears filled my eyes. It was the same one from my dream.
“This is the one I love the most,” I said.
“You’rethe one I love the most,” Jack said suddenly and then grasped the bottom of my chin, tilting my head up until his warm lips pressed against mine.
Warmth spread through my body as I deepened the kiss. Kissing Jack was my favorite thing.
I took a moment to reflect on all my blessings. Jack had become the spiritual leader I’d always envisioned marrying. He led us in prayer, and we attended Bible study together. He was so hungry for the word of God, and he was always volunteering atchurch. He was kind and generous and romantic. I thanked God for him every day. Getting fired had been the biggest blessing of my life, because it had brought me Jack.
