College Daddy: A Single Dad Romance

by Amber Heart

  Avery was the first to speak “Aaron is one lucky guy.” The group exploded with excitement and I caught a glimpse of the photographer capturing the moment. My mum came over and gave me a careful hug. This is the happiest day of my life and we’re only just getting started!

  It’s time to go outside and take photos with everyone… I wonder how Aaron is getting on?

  Aaron

  The groomsmen and I arrived an hour early at the ceremony so we could sort any problems out if they came up. Cassandra and the bridesmaids should be here in the next fifteen minutes, they’re going to sneak into one of the rooms to make sure nobody gets an early peek at her gown.

  The ceremony is going to be amazing. The huge white gazebo in the center of the field will be where we stand. Behind the gazebo, the beautiful green grass merges into the warm sand. In the background, we’ll have the bright blue sea glistening in the sun. Surrounding the area of grass we will be getting married on is a beautiful outdoor area. We hired this whole area out for the day! When the ceremony is done and we get to partying, everyone will have access to the cocktail bars, dance floors, pool tables, and the sun beds.

  The ceremony is going to be short, we don’t want to be out here for too long otherwise we’ll pass out from the heat of the sun. The speakers are setup and the music is ready to play for when my angel walks down the isle. The flowers that have been arranged are phenomenal. The tropical colors brighten up the whole place even more. Outside where the service is going to be held, people will sit on styled wooden chairs which match the color scheme of the whole place.

  Quinn put his arm on my shoulder “You feeling alright, man?” I looked at him “I’m not going to lie, this is the most nervous I’ve ever felt in my life.” He lets out a light chuckle “That’s normal. I felt like that as well. It all fades away when you see your girl walking towards you down that isle.” Quinn’s words actually managed to calm me down, he knows how to get through to me. I give him a pat on the back “There’s a reason you’re my best mate.”

  Quinn looked at his watch “People should be arriving soon, that means Cass should have already snuck in by now.” A few minutes later both our families found their seats. All of them had big smiles across their face and kept giving me the thumbs up gesture. Slowly, more and more began to trickle in. Before I knew it the place was packed and it was time to get started.

  The traditional music we selected started playing, signaling the start of the ceremony. I immediately tensed up and held my breath. Everyone stood up and turned around to face the entrance. A few seconds went by which felt like an eternity. That’s when I saw her. The most beautiful person I’ve ever laid my eyes on. She looks like absolute perfection. She began to walk down the isle and I tried my best to fight back a tear, but I let one fall out. This is without a doubt the best moment of my life. No one has ever made me this happy.

  With each step she took my heart started to beat faster and faster. The closer she got, the more I could see. She must have put so much work in to look this amazing. Her dress makes her look like a princess and her hair is truly amazing. I’ve never seen it look this nice. Her makeup is gorgeous as well, it isn’t too overpowering. I could still see my lovely Cassandra under it all while it accentuated her wonderful facial features.

  She entered the gazebo and we turned to face each other. I whispered over to her with a huge smile on my face “You look stunning.” She blushed and winked at me. The officiant got started straight away, he knew we didn’t want a long ceremony. He started with a brief introduction and got started. “Now we’ll move onto the vows that Aaron and Cassandra have prepared for each other.” We both wrote them together, so we’ll be saying the same set.

  Cassandra was first “On this day, I give you my heart and my life, My promise, That I will walk with you and cherish you, Hand in hand and step by step, Wherever our journey leads us, Living, learning, loving, Together, Forever.” Another tear ran down my face and I could see Cassandra wanted to cry too.

  Now it was my turn “On this day, I give you my heart and my life, My promise, That I will walk with you and cherish you, Hand in hand and step by step, Wherever our journey leads us, Living, learning, loving, Together, Forever.” She couldn’t stop smiling. I wanted this feeling to last forever.

  The officiant moved the ceremony along, it was time for the rings. This time it was my turn to go first. I pick up the ring “I give you this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness. As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you. I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day. This ring is a token of my love. I marry you with this ring, with all that I have and all that I am.” I slid the ring onto her finger and she almost burst into tears. She took a deep breath and looked me in the eyes “I will forever wear this ring as a sign of my commitment to you and our life.”

  Cass picked up the other ring “I give you this ring as a visible and constant symbol of my promise to be with you as long as I live.” She slid the ring onto my finger and squeezed my hand tight. Her eyes are so beautiful “I will forever wear this ring as a sign of my commitment to you and our life.”

  The officiant let us share that moment before moving onto the next part of the ceremony. “Throughout this ceremony, Cassandra and Aaron have vowed, in our presence, to be loyal and loving towards each other. They have formalized the existence of the bond between them with words spoken and with the giving and receiving of rings. Therefore, it is my pleasure to now pronounce them husband and wife…You may now kiss your bride!”

  We both lean into the kiss and it is the most passionate and loving kiss we have ever shared together. If time froze and we were stuck in this moment, I’d be the happiest man alive.

  After savoring the moment, we turned to face our family and friends. The officiant said his last words “Ladies and gentleman, let me please present to you Mr and Mrs Maxfield.” Music began playing and we walked down the isle with interlocking arms and huge smiles across our face. Nothing could ruin this moment, we are in heaven.

  As we make it to the end of the isle, Cass turns to face me “I love you, Aaron Maxfield.” I cupped her face with both hands and gave her another passionate kiss “I love you too, Cassandra Maxfield.”

  Epilogue

  Five Years Later

  Aaron, Cassandra, and Mark are still working with each other and the business is showing no signs of slowing down. Kenneth James got locked up and won’t be out for twenty-five years. When he went away, his business folded into the ground. Mark and Aaron took the majority of his clients and hired most of the team that worked for him.

  Cassandra doesn’t get to spend much time at the office anymore, she decided she wanted to stay at home and look after the children. Harvey, who is now three and Ruby, who is now two. They bought a nice house out of town, it was better for the kids. They also got a dog named Alfie who is an excellent, loving addition to the family. It’s a bit of a commute for Aaron to get into the office every day, but it’s worth it for the freedom and safety. Life couldn’t be more perfect. After all, they deserved it. They both went through a lot to make it this far.

  Quinn and Avery are still together, they meet up weekly with Aaron and Cassandra. They come round every weekend for a chat and dinner while their twins, James and Jack keep themselves busy. Next month they’re all going on a huge holiday cruise together. Aaron and Cassandra’s parents will be there as well as Quinn’s mother, Aria.

  Aaron and Cassandra are celebrating their five year wedding anniversary tonight. Aaron’s parents will be taking the kids, so they can have the night to the themselves. Aaron has it all planned out, the first place they’re heading is the fanciest restaurant in town. After that they’ll head home and flick through all the wedding photos whilst listening to the soppiest music they can find. Then for the finale, they’ll end the night in the bedroom getting up to mischief… For the past two months they’ve been trying for a third child. Perhaps tonight will be the
night?

  Thank you for reading!

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  Turn over and enjoy His Biography: A Clean Football Romance

  His Biography

  A Clean Football Romance

  By Amber Heart

  Chapter 1

  Call it momentary amnesia or morning-fueled absent-mindedness. Whichever you choose, Kennedi Kincaid was right in the thick of it. Though she opened her eyes, one at a time, and stretched groggily as though it were a normal day, that was by no means the case – not even by a long shot. Today was, quite poetically and rather logically, the first day of the rest of her life for two very distinct, very magical reasons.

  Magical reason #1: this was officially the inaugural day of her senior year at Douglas State University (DSU). Four years prior to this very date, at freshman orientation, when she was told to look to her left, then to her right, and warned that “one of you won’t make it”, Kennedi had no doubt that she would definitely not be the “one” to fall by the wayside. At the outset of her journey at DSU, actually getting to senior year was only a tangible idea that lived in her mind, buoyed by her determination. Today, it was in fact a reality – a yet-to-be celebrated reality– but a dream that had achieved fruition, nonetheless.

  Magical reason #2: this would be her first official day on campus following a game-changing summer experience. After not only landing a highly coveted internship at Sports Illustrated (SI) but standing out amongst the rest during her tenure, Kennedi would now have the professional bona fides to call major shots as a reporter at her campus newspaper, the Douglas Weekly. While she had been a member of the Weekly’s writing staff for two years and earned some level of seniority as a result, Kennedi knew that working at a nationally-recognized publication – if only for the summer – would definitely give her the increased clout she needed to make major moves at her home institution. All throughout the summer, as she thought about returning back to campus, she couldn’t wait to wield her shiny, newfound street cred. Today would be the first opportunity to do that and – so far – she had met the day as if it was as humdrum as any other.

  That was, until she didn’t – until lightning struck and she was instantaneously reminded why her ho-hum transition from deep sleep to consciousness needed a serious do-over. Suddenly, as if a switch was flipped and a bulb illuminated over her head, Kennedi went from yawning and nonchalantly stretching in bed, to the wide-eyed look of excitement and anticipation worthy of a day like this one. Kennedi quickly realized that the faster she got out of bed, the sooner she could take full advantage of everything that the day had in store for her. Freshly motivated by a carpe diem-fueled zeal, she swatted the covers from across her body, jutted her legs out from the sheets, and sprang up to greet the day as soon as her feet were firmly planted on the floor.

  While, magical reasons #1 and #2 were quite fabulous on their own, when synergistically melded together, they sparked yet another reason for the sheer excitement finally, fittingly running through Kennedi’s bones. During the summer, she had a major aha moment and was heavily inspired to flex her muscle as both a high-achieving senior and a highly-proficient journalist the second she got back to campus. Kennedi had decided to explore a once-in-a-lifetime kind of story that could draw major attention to DSU and lurch her career forward in a major way. While she could clearly see the benefit of her idea to the campus, to the Weekly, and to herself, she also knew that it wouldn’t be put into action unless she sold it, in the just the right way, to the right people and today was the day to do it!

  After rising out of bed and getting into the early-morning groove of her day, Kennedi went to her favorite place to get her thoughts together: the bathroom. Though slightly unconventional, the mirror that sat right above her sink was just the place she needed to practice the pitch for her ingenious idea and lay the foundation to get her groundbreaking story greenlit. On this particular morning, Kennedi began brainstorming by taking a look at herself in the mirror, grabbing her toothbrush, and then slathering it with a minty, white gel. With her toothbrush in hand, moving it in a sweeping, bubble-inducing motion across her teeth, she practiced the arguments she would use to persuade the Douglas Weekly’s Editor-in-Chief and its staff that her story just had to be written. Speaking directly to the mirror, as if it were her audience, she laid the groundwork for the day to come.

  For the last year and a half, at least, Kennedi’s mirror had been a major testing ground for her – prime speech-rehearsal real estate. As a journalist who had to propose story ideas, conduct interviews, and interact with a wide variety of people, her mirror often gave her the space to lay out her thoughts, draft strategies, and be more than equipped to tap into the magic that happens when opportunity meets preparation.

  Kennedi learned very early-on in her journalistic career that – aside from the backspace key on her keyboard and the much maligned retraction – there were very few ways to correct critical mistakes and rebuild in her chosen profession. Dropping the ball on a pivotal conversation, failing to investigate a lead, or missing out on an opportunity to engage an interesting perspective could be the death knell for her. She learned this critical fact as a neophyte and Kennedi was the type of person that never had to learn a hard lesson twice. This morning was no different. She had a basic idea about what she wanted to say and how; she just needed to refine her delivery, figure out which words to emphasize, and make sure that her facial expressions supported her message.

  Her mind brimming with ideas, after a few several test runs, Kennedi managed to eek out a concise, effective position for why her once-in-a-lifetime story had to be told. When she was convinced that she had a solid premise and a winning argument, Kennedi went about readying herself to leave the house. After strategically preparing her mind, body, and ego to face the day, Kennedi eagerly bolted from her apartment and into her car, ready to get her fall semester and – quite possibly – the assignment of her career to date started. Somewhat of a perfectionist, Kennedi rehearsed the delivery of her pitch again and again. By the time she finally had her script and cadence nailed down, she’d battled through traffic, arrived to DSU’s main commuter lot, and was ready to park.

  As she made the walk from her car to the Fine Arts building, where the Douglas Weekly was headquartered, Kennedi was happy to be back on campus and was reminded of why fall semester had always been her favorite. As a season, fall is usually associated with the ironic beauty of dying and decaying things – think the golden, red, and bronze leaves that signal the inevitable approach of the cold, dreary winter to come. But, as a semester, at least for Kennedi, fall was actually the time for new beginnings, when the promise of growth was in the air - think the newly minted freshmen, overflowing with hope about their future. Even for students returning to campus, fall marked a chance to rebirth expectation and reintroduce themselves to the people, places, and things that continued to shape their experiences and themselves.

  In that vein, after reaching campus and getting re-acclimated to everything, something familiar was re-awakened inside of Kennedi. Just like that, she had been given the missing ingredient; she knew that she was ready to make her case and, ultimately, make her mark.

  Chapter 2

  Kennedi sauntered into the News Room and immediately sat her book bag down on top of an empty table. The News Room was the name for the Douglas Weekly’s central headquarters and, to Kennedi and the rest of the staff, it was the place where magic was made. In spite of its significance on campus, the News Room was a rather small place with a very unassuming aesthetic. While it’s square footage was small and its configuration was quite basic, its responsibility was quite large indeed: keeping the students, faculty, staff, and administrators that were the lifeblood of DSU informed, engaged, and connected.

  The Weekly’s
headquarters was essentially comprised of two rooms. The larger of the two accommodated the newspaper’s staff as they worked, played, and learned. On its’ perimeter, sat tables, pushed up against each of the four walls. All but one of those tables was empty; the table propped against the east-facing wall was, in a sense, decorated with a row of rarely used desktop computers. The empty tables were used the most; the Weekly’s staff would typically bring their own laptops and primarily leverage the common space to bandy about ideas and get second opinions in between classes and during the 20-hours that everyone had committed each week.

  To complete the space, a long table sat in the middle of the room. It served as the place where the reporters, artists, photographers, and managers who made the paper run convened for weekly meetings. All combined, the Douglas Weekly’s largest area was both a workspace and a boardroom. Though both, in a sense, were rather makeshift, the dedicated team not only made it work but managed to thrive and provide DSU’s community with award-winning coverage.

  The second room, which was much smaller and situated off in a corner, belonged to Dr. Francis Blight, the Editor-in-Chief and Faculty Advisor responsible for overseeing the integrity and quality of the campuses’ 53 year-old ledger. Frank, as the Douglas Weekly staff called him, was a tough, but fair critic and gate-keeper. He held the majority of the power that could propel a story to the front page or quash it before it was fully presented at pitch. As far as Kennedi was concerned, she knew she had an amazing idea but unless she could convince Frank and the rest of the staff, it would never see the light of day.