“I love you too.” He drops his mouth to mine, kissing me deeply. One of his hands comes to rest on my belly.
“Show me the house.”
He steps back, revealing a house that looks like it’s been plucked out of the set of a movie. It’s big but homey. He takes my hand, leading me inside. There is nothing to it, but my mind starts putting it together in my head. I begin to point out where things can go and what could be done. All the other houses we’ve seen haven’t caused me to feel anything. I don’t know if it’s the house or if I can finally see Oliver and me having a family together. Making a real home together.
“What do you think?” he asks me.
I look up at him. “It’s perfect. We can make it our own. The groundwork is already laid. Kind of like us. Now we get to finish the story.”
I knew without a doubt Oliver would stop at nothing to make sure it was a happily ever after.
Epilogue
Madeleine
Months later
Life has been busy these past couple of months since Oliver and I professed our love to one another. There’s been a lot that has happened in a short amount of time. The house was getting done in record time. I was married in a whirlwind event. Everyone I cared about was there. More importantly, I’ve gotten close to Oliver’s family. Mainly his sister, Blossom. They tease that she can be a little ditzy at times, but I think she has the biggest heart out of all the Gentrys. I love Oliver’s parents, but his sister has made me feel so welcome into their lives without it feeling forced. I’m glad that Blossom was around when Oliver introduced me to everyone. It made my introduction into the family a little more seamless than it would have been if it had only been Oliver and me. Not that any of it was really that bad, but I had been worried about them liking me. Sometimes people have preconceived notions of who I am because of what they have read in tabloids or because they’ve seen my face plastered everywhere.
His mom surprised me by raining kisses all over my face when she learned both my sister, Cora, and I were alone in the world. Oliver even had a guest house built in the back of our land for whenever my sister or Danielle wanted to come and stay for long periods of time. I couldn’t wait for the house to be done and to get settled in. It is going to be close but if I know Oliver, he’ll make it happen. Just like he made our wedding happen in the back yard. He had said that he wanted to see the place that I swore in front of everyone to be his every day. Who knew strolling into a bar one night would change my whole life? I’ve gone from going through the motions to actually living.
“I’m starving. Can we get food before we stop at the house?” I ask, rubbing my ever growing belly. Two more weeks and our little girl is going to be here. Oliver has been attached to my side since we both finally admitted our love to each other. He doesn’t want to miss a second of anything our little girl might do, even if she is still inside my stomach. My stomach that wouldn’t stop growing. Not that I cared that my modeling days are over. My agent tried to talk me into a pregnancy ad campaign but I turned it down. I am leaving that life behind. The only spotlight I want to be in is my husband’s. I am starting a new life. One that I want more than anything.
“We can get something after.” I jerk my head over to look at my husband. The man who is always trying to feed me. He must have heard me wrong, because he never denies me food. This is coming from the same man that went out at midnight the other night to get me a chocolate dipped cone. Something isn’t adding up here. The Oliver I know would be offering me some sort of snack that he had hidden away in case I got hungry. I look at him suspiciously, trying to figure out what’s going on.
“You hear that, Riley?” I look down, rubbing my hand over my belly. A little growl comes from my stomach in perfect timing. “You’ll have to wait to have something to eat until after we get to the house.” I watch as Oliver’s eyebrows furrow. I continue down this path, now on a mission to see why Oliver is acting weird. “Don’t kick me because your daddy won’t stop and get you a snack. Take it up with him when you come out.” Oliver’s hands tighten on the steering wheel. “Everything okay?” I fight a smile. He simply nods his head, his jaw tight.