“Yes…?” Milkshakes are a hell of a lot easier than bunnies.
“Okay.”
With that, she snuggles under the covers and sings, “This is the best day ever.”
After pressing a kiss to her forehead, I rejoin Claire on the couch. She cozies up into my side and I kiss her on the forehead too. With my heart overflowing like a lake into the ocean, I bring my mouth to the ear of the woman I love and whisper, “What do you say, baby? Wanna sleep over for the rest of your life?”
Epilogue
Asher
Five Years Later
“If we don’t leave now,we’re going to be late,” I call out from the laundry room.
No answer.
Just the sound of giggles.
I’m stepping into the hallway when my wife shouts, “Oh my god. Ash, can you take a picture? Quick.”
I race into the living room and am met with the cutest scene. Our ten-month-old son, Eli, dressed in a purple tutu. The same one his big sister wore on her fifth birthday.
Bea holds both of her brother’s hands as his chubby bare feet smack against the wood floors.
He took his first steps last weekend—in Southern California,much to Claire’s dismay. We all flew out to San Diego to celebrate Kane’s college graduation. It was Eli’s first plane ride, and let’s just say we will not be flying again anytime soon. I think Claire and I are traumatized for life. Scratch that. Every person on that plane is traumatized. He screamed for seventy-five percent of the trip, and no amount of nursing calmed him down. If Claire and I ever have another kid, we’re naming him or her after the saint of a flight attendant who finally offered to walk up and down the aisles with Eli.
We shared a vacation rental on the beach with Millie, Ezra, and their three-year-old daughter, Talia, as well as Cam and Joey, who I doubt will ever have kids. The one day it rained and we were all stuck inside, Bea took it upon herself to teach Eli how to walk.
I’ll never forget Claire’s face as she whipped around the corner and yelled, “Knock him down! He’s too little.”
Mama was not prepared for this milestone to happen so quickly. I don’t blame her. While he only took two or three steps before falling on his bottom while we were there, he’s up to four or five steps at a time now. He’ll be chasing after Bea in the blink of an eye.
“Where’s your shirt, little man?” I pick him up and toss him into the air, then blow raspberries on his bare belly.
I could listen to his laughter all day.
When I set him back on the floor, Bea is right there to scoop him up. She has been smitten with her little brother since the day he was born.
After Claire moved in with us permanently, everything clicked into place. There were no major bumps in the road. I continued doing our laundry and bringing Claire coffee in bed, and she took over bathroom duty. We share kitchen responsibilities, and it works for us. My only complaint is that she nevermakes the bed, and her only complaint is I never put the toothpaste back where it belongs. But I think we can live with that.
We were basically a family already, except that Claire didn’t have any parental rights to Bea. The decision we came to regarding the situation wasn’t made in haste, that’s for sure. I spent many hours talking to Daisy at her memorial cove, and ultimately, I felt in my heart and soul that I wanted to marry Claire and ask her to adopt Bea. I discussed it with Jack and Natalie first, then my therapist, then Claire, and finally Bea. Jack and Natalie were emotional, but their support never wavered.
Proposing to Claire and asking her to adopt Bea were two tasks that could not be disentangled, so I popped both questions on the same day. We were hitched less than a month later in a small synagogue on Long Island with our families and close friends in attendance. The short notice irked my parents, until I reminded them that their daughter gave them only one day’s notice before she got married at city hall. Ray, Benji, and Zion proudly shared the title of best men, while Millie, Joey, and Bea stood alongside Claire.
Even though the ceremony was on the shorter side, Bea had to go to the bathroom about halfway through, claiming she absolutely could not wait. Our family and friends roared with laughter as Claire carried her up the aisle as fast as her high heels would take her so Bea wouldn’t have an accident. Then the two of them returned with the biggest smiles on their faces and I got to watch both my girls walk down the aisle for a second time that day.
The adoption was finalized just before Bea’s seventh birthday. Since Claire and I were married and she had already been living with us for several months, the process was fairly simple and smooth. We celebrated with chocolate milkshakes, go-cart rides, and finally letting Bea get her ears pierced.
It was theperfect day.
Claire had major baby fever when our niece, Talia, was born, and I’ll admit, I did too. It took several months and too many negative pregnancy tests for us to realize that we might need help. We sought out a doctor, only to get a positive test the morning of the appointment.
The hardest part was keeping it a secret from Bea. The day, probably down to the second, that Claire was out of her first trimester, we surprised her with a “Big Sister” shirt. My ears are still ringing from the scream she let out.
Now, when I see my children together, I’m reminded that life is unpredictable and precious.
“Come on, Eli.” Bea stands two feet in front of him, her arms out. “Walk to Dolly.”
