“Did you know?” I whisper, and Nate nods.
When they break apart, Nate speaks up. “I’ve also filled out the paperwork. I’m changing my name to Nathaniel Javier Davenport.”
I gasp, shocked. This is a surprise to me.
These men…
“We are keeping Davenport, in honor of our grandfather; otherwise, we would have changed that, too,” Harrison adds.
After the celebratory hugs, I walk up to Juliette to give her my attention.
“How are you feeling?”
“Like something chewed me up and spit me out.”
I cringe. “That bad?”
She nods. “Mark my words, I’m never giving birth again.”
I giggle at her dramatics.
“Did Becks make it?” I cross my fingers, hoping.
“Yes. Thank God.” She widens her eyes. “I would have killed Harrison with my bare hands if she hadn’t. She ran home to change.”
Harrison places the baby back in her arms, and we both swoon over how precious he is.
“He’s perfect, Juliette.”
She kisses his forehead. “Thanks. I think so too.”
My eyes rose to see Nate staring at me, with love in his eyes.
“I love you,”he mouths, and I feel emotions swell in my heart.
Hopefully, soon, we can share the joy of a child, too.
An hour later, we’re on our way home, but first, we’ve made a detour to see my studio.
“So it’s not much.” I unlock the door to my new West Village studio and walk into the empty space. There’s a small table in the corner, left by the previous owners, but that’s it. “There’s a lot of work to do to make it up to code. And I have a lot of equipment to buy, but it’s mine.”
Nate walks the perimeter, taking it all in, then walks up behind me and takes me in his arms. “I can envision you here, working.”
“You can?”
He nods. “I can’t wait to see it all come to life.”
“Me either,” I whisper.
“Do you know, out of everything, this makes me most proud of you.”
I spin around to face him. “Really?”
“Yes.” He cups my cheek, then leans in and kisses my lips. The kiss is slow and meaningful. Not rushed, and I love it like this. When he lingers, letting all my senses awaken. He pulls back and tucks a piece of hair behind my ear, smiling. “Because this is the first thing you built that belongs only to you. You’re an incredible architect, Mads, but this”—his fingers curl gently at the back of my neck, drawing me closer—“this is you choosing yourself. No expectations. No pressure. No, trying to prove to your parents that you’re better than what they told you. Just Maddie doing something for herself.”
Emotion swells thick in my chest.
He presses his forehead to mine. “Congrats, babe.”
