Her eyes flicked toward the kids, and they held their palms open, too, each with a simple platinum band with diamonds and sapphires in channel settings.
“What . . . w-what?”
“Gwen.” I pulled her face toward mine. “Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”
Her mouth opened and a squeak came out, and I smiled.
“Auntie G? Wiw you mawwy us?” Brady crawled forward with his ring and presented it in his tiny fist.
She took a shaky breath and sobbed, nodding. “Of course. Of course I will,” she cried into her open hand. Brady slipped the first ring onto her finger, followed by the solitaire, and completed the setting with Bree’s ring. The three rings locked together like a puzzle, each piece working with the other to form a perfect unit on her hand.
She stared at it and then pushed up onto her knees to throw her arms around my neck. “Are you sure?” she asked through her tears then kissed me. “Are you sure?”
I kissed her back and pulled away to wipe the tears from her face. “I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life.”
She laughed and hugged me tighter. “I love you, you know.”
“I do know.”
Tiny hands wrapped around my neck, and another set settled around my waist.
I leaned back and kissed Gwen’s forehead.
“There’s one other thing.”
“How could there possibly be more?” she asked.
I smiled. “Gwen?”
“Yes, Andrew?”
“You need to find another nanny.” My smile grew wider. “Because I quit.”
Final Manny Log Entry
Caring for these children has taught me more than any college class or year abroad.
Finding what works takes perseverance. And trust.
Blue’s Clues is okay, but Steve is better than Joe. Joe looks like the walking dead, and no kid should have to see that shit.
Kids learn best by doing. And they imitate everything. This serves to make you a better person in the long run, knowing you’re always being watched. Even while taking a piss.
Children’s shows are made to annoy the shit out of you so you take the kids to a park and get some exercise. I am convinced of this marketing move on Sprout’s part.
I’d still engage in a threesome with Nina.
Molding a young mind can make you feel important.
Children can show you how to love completely and without boundaries. They’ll open your eyes to things you take for granted. They’ll love you for being you. And for just loving them in return.
Epilogue
In My Life
What does a manny do while the kids are away at school? He gets his teaching certificate to be a music teacher.
With my degree in piano and the certification, I was approved to start teaching after winter break. At the Halloween dance, I’d spoken with the headmaster about applying for the position. I knew Ainslie had had a lot to do with his saying yes, and I vowed to repay her someday.
After the wedding, of course.
The day we were married, Gwen gave each of the children a gift. Bree got a locket and Brady got a pocket watch, both containing pictures of their parents. Gwen wore a bracelet with pictures of her dad and Bryan and Anna inside, because she wanted them to walk her down the aisle.
I stood in front of the old shed in the park, Gwen’s favorite place in the world, and watched her walk down the path with the kids by her side. The mossy branch of the tree hung over my head, and I folded my hands in front of Don, obscuring his view for the ceremony. He wasn’t invited.
My eyes were trained on Gwen’s face, and I smiled until it hurt.
Gwen stopped moving altogether as soon we finally saw one another for the first time. Bree and Brady tugged on her elbows, and she looked down into their faces.
“I love you,” she whispered, and they smiled and said it back.
She lifted her gaze back to me and started forward again. The three people who held the keys to my heart approached the front together.
I extended my hand to her, and the children maintained their grip on her elbows.
The pastor smiled. “Who gives this woman away?”
Brady and Bree just stared.
“You do,” I reminded them. “Say, ‘We do.’ ”
Brady looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “I’m not givin’ hew ’way. You promised!”
“No,” Gwen said. “You’re just letting go of my arm so I can hold Dee’s hand.”
Bree looked between me and Gwen and shook her head.
There was tittering in the crowd, and I could hear my father’s laughter from the front row. I stifled the smile that was creeping across my face as Gwen looked over her shoulder and motioned to Tess, the maid of honor. Tess took the bouquet of flowers so Gwen could hold the children’s hands by her side. I followed suit, and we formed a circle in front of the pastor. Brady stood at the man’s feet and tilted his head back to look up at his face.
“You have a big nose,” he whispered.
The pastor laughed, and then it turned into snorts, and soon he was crying, wiping tears from his eyes. Brady shrugged and turned to look at the crowd of friends and family.
As the pastor gained his composure, I mouthed to Gwen, “You look beautiful.”
She mouthed back, “Thank you.”
The pastor cleared his throat and began the ceremony. I wasn’t sure I heard a word of it.
We repeated the vows the pastor spoke—words that had been spoken for centuries, by billions before us. They were our vows now.
As Gwen placed a ring on my finger, and I did the same with the three rings that had been soldered together as a single unit, we meant those vows. There would be better times and worse times. There would be moments when we’d struggle or get sick. There would be days when we’d go without speaking, when we’d disagree on small things like dinner and big things like college applications. We’d want to kill each other at one point or another. But hadn’t we already been there?
The pastor took a breath and beamed at me. “I said, ‘You may now kiss the bride.’ ”
I hung my head in embarrassment and laughed before lowering my face to Gwen’s. She threw her arms around my neck and brought her lips to mine as I dipped her toward the guests and they erupted into cheers.
“Gwoss,” Brady said.
We smiled against each other’s lips, and her hands wound their way into my hair as I tightened my grip on her back.
We kissed again and walked down to the edge of the trees to have our pictures taken as the band set up around the dance floor my mom had ordered. The cake was in place and candles were lit everywhere. White lights had been strung through trees and across tables, like hundreds of stars and fireflies illuminating the night.
The DJ announced us, and the band cued up. I tilted my head and smiled before pulling Gwen into my arms.
“I have a surprise for you.”
“What’s that?” she asked.
The music began, and Gwen looked over her shoulder to see Bree standing in front at the microphone.
Bree smiled and cleared her throat. “My daddy used to hum this to us to get us to sleep. I think he would have wanted me to sing this song to make you happy today, too.” Her eyes glistened under the twinkling lights, and she took a deep breath before stepping over to the keyboard.
Her fingers moved across the keys, and her little voice lifted above our heads into the air as she sang “In My Life.”
Tears sprang to Gwen’s eyes, and her mouth dropped open. I wiped a stray one that fell onto her cheek and pulled her close.
“She’s so good,” Gwen whispered, her voice tight.
“She’s an excellent student.”
Bree’s last note faded into the sky. She made her way over to us, and Gwen dropped to her knees to pull the little girl to her chest.
That evening, we went to a hotel to rest before leaving for Hawaii. We spent the night reminiscing over the evening, worrying a
bout the kids, discussing the future, and touching each other just because we could. We made love, exhausted and happy, before we fell asleep tangled in the sheets and in each other.
A few days later, as Gwen was lying across my chest, watching the pinks and golds of sunset scatter across the sky, I felt like everything was right in the world.
I ran a tanned hand over her cheek and smiled up at her from the sand.
“What are you thinking about?” I asked.
She breathed easy as the waves rolled in closer and closer, just missing our toes. “I was thinking this is the longest we’ve been alone together since we first met. And we have no one to interrupt us or walk in on us. No cartoons on in the background or homework to look over. It’s so quiet.”
I quirked a brow. “And you do or don’t like this scenario?”
Humming, she ran a thumb over my eyebrow. “Oh, I like it very much. Though I do miss The Wiggles.”
I laughed and leaned up to kiss the tip of her nose. “I could say something perverted right now, but I won’t.”
She scrunched up her face and pushed out her lower lip. “But your perverted ways are what made me fall for you in the first place.”
I snickered, then our lips met and she shifted to straddle my hips. My hands settled on her back, my fingers dipping below the waist of her shorts and sliding against the exposed skin where her tank top had ridden up. I gripped her sides as we deepened the kiss, the waves now rolling in warm and steady, hitting my legs and splashing against her.
“We’re lucky,” she said.
“Luck has nothing to do with it. We just had to find our way, that’s all.”
She tightened her thighs around my hips. “Take me home.”
I grinned and leaned back. “You know the hotel room isn’t home, right?”
She ran a hand across my cheek. “I know. Home is where you are.”
We deserved that kind of love for the span of forever.
Love doesn’t have an end, or a time frame. It’s not from nine to five—not just a few days a week. Love works overtime. Every day. Even on weekends.
And one extra day just to prove that it’s real.
Thank you for your purchase. Please long onto Amazon.com or Goodreads.com and leave a review for this title. We would love to hear from you.
About the Author
Amber is a full-time mom and a full-time wife who is employed full time and writes when she can. She believes in Happily Ever Afters that occur every day—despite the obstacles real life serves up on a regular basis. Or perhaps they’re sweeter simply because of them. She always has two rubber bands on her wrist, a song in her head, and too much creamer in her coffee cup that reads ‘Cocoa,’ because she’s a rebel. If she’s not at her desk, with her boys, or behind the computer, she’s supporting live music with her arms raised above her head and her eyes closed, waiting for the drop.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to the following individuals who, without their contributions and support, this book could not have been written:
To the huge circle of women who read the first draft and believed in me more than I ever could, I thank you. Don’s Playground will forever hold the most special place in my heart.
To Kathie Spitz who first helped me craft the words in this story. You’ve always encouraged me in the sweetest of ways. Thank you.
To Angela and Lori for rereading until your eyes crossed, thank you for your patience.
To the Smith family for letting me take care of your delightful children, who were the inspirations for Bree and Brady.
To the wonderful team at The Writer’s Coffee Shop for taking a chance on a girl with a silly story to tell. I am so honored to be working with you.
To every person who picked up this book and read even a word of it, I thank you.
And lastly to Nick Jr., Sprout, and Disney Jr., thanks for making this mom a little crazy with your programming. Without you, this story would have lacked some incredible rants.
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