“Yes,” I said with a soft laugh. “She does.”
“Then it’s fine with me,” Tommy said, shrugging. “I don’t mind at all.”
“Sarah?” I asked.
“I think it’s amazing!” she said. “Listen,” I said slowly. “Emily will never take your mommy’s place, okay? I know she takes great care of you, and I know how much you love her, but your mommy is still special to you both. That won’t change.”
“I know,” Sarah said. “But Mommy is in heaven. She can’t take care of us. I think she would want someone like Emily to do it. She would really like Emily.”
“I think so too,” I said, smiling again.
“You’re happier now,” Tommy said. “Ever since Emily moved in with us, you’ve been happier. I think that’s good. You’re nicer now, and you smile more. If Emily is the reason, then you should date her or marry her or whatever you want.”
“Thank you, Tommy,” I said. My eyes were filling again, and I blinked hard to dry them.
“Are you going to marry her?” Sarah asked.
I opened my mouth to answer, but no words came out. The truth was, I loved the idea of marrying Emily, but it was too soon to think about those things. She and I only admitted our feelings last night. Still, it was a nice thought. I smiled as I thought about Emily walking toward me wearing a white dress, her hair tied up beautifully. I could already see the veil extending out behind her, and just the image was enough to excite me.
“Maybe someday,” I said softly. “If she wants to marry me.”
“She will,” Sarah said firmly. “I know it.”
“How can you be so sure?” I asked.
“Because, if you’re nice, then she’ll marry you,” Sarah said. “That’s how it works.”
“No, it’s not,” Tommy said with a roll of his eyes. “She has to love him, Sarah. God, you don’t know anything.”
“I do too!” Sarah screamed. “You’re stup
id!”
“Stop it,” I said with a sigh. “Let’s head home.”
I laughed to myself as we made our way back down the street. Our house wasn’t far, but Tommy and Sarah made the walk seem endless with their constant bickering. When we finally made it to the front door, I silenced them both with a look and pushed the door open. We stepped inside to see Emily sitting on the couch.
She looked over at us with a smile that took my breath away. Her long, dark curls hung loosely over her shoulders. They were wet so I knew she only just got out of the shower. She was wearing a pair of yoga pants that hugged her body and a T-shirt that was a little too small. I grinned at her and walked over, eager to kiss her.
I leaned down to kiss her, but she pulled away quickly, glancing frantically at the kids.
“It’s okay,” Tommy said. “You can kiss him. He told us you like him.”
“Oh, he did?” Emily asked with a laugh. She looked at me with raised eyebrows, and I just shrugged.
“Yeah,” Sarah said. “We don’t care if you kiss, just don’t make it a habit.”
Emily and I both laughed before we leaned together for a light kiss. The kids both grinned and then went about their business, playing games and ignoring us.
We spent the rest of the day playing together, eating lunch and then dinner. At night, we all curled up on the couch under one big blanket and watched a movie. We shared a bowl of popcorn and laughed some more. Tommy and Sarah both fell asleep before the movie was half over, but Emily and I stayed there for hours, just holding the kids and each other. It felt so safe under that blanket that neither of us ever wanted to move.
EPILOGUE - EMILY
Sean’s book tour started a month ago, and finally the kids and I were able to join him. He tried to plan the tour over summer break, but they insisted on starting it during the month of May. It was hard, but we managed to make it work.
I stayed in Telluride to take care of Tommy and Sarah while Sean started his tour on the west coast. On weekends, I flew Tommy and Sarah out to see him, and sometimes, when he had enough time, he came home to spend the day with us. It was difficult, but now summer vacation was upon us.
I packed up the kids and my luggage, and Janie drove us to the airport. We were meeting Sean in Chicago that morning. He already had three events booked for today, and the kids and I would meet him at the second. His agent had everything set up: our car, our hotel, everything.