by T. M. Cromer
One foot on the steps, she pivoted back to ask, “Where in the world did you find a puppy on such short notice?”
He looked embarrassed as he stroked the tiny head. “I didn’t. I had picked her out a few weeks back. I was only waiting until she was old enough to bring home. After dinner, I called the breeder to see if I could pick her up a day early.”
Chagrin mixed with regret. She couldn’t take a dog meant for him. “She was supposed to be your dog?”
“No!” He laughed and dropped a kiss on her lips. “I should clarify. She was always meant for you. I would have gotten you a cat, but you said you were more of a dog person.”
“Have I said how much I love you?”
“I’ll never get tired of hearing it.” He swatted her butt. “Go get your shower.”
RAND WATCHED as the puppy practiced her pouncing skills on Faith’s flowers. As he sat in the garden with the tiny terror, he marveled at how well the horrid night had turned around. Faith loved him. He hadn’t expected anything in the way of deep emotional commitment from her. He wasn’t conditioned to expect anything at all. Yet, she not only forgave his foolish behavior, she went so far as to return his feelings.
The door behind him opened and the scent of cookies greeted him. Frowning, he eyed the plate in Faith’s hands. “Cookies?”
“I bake when I’m upset. It’s a Fiore tradition. Anyway, since I made a few batches earlier tonight, I thought I’d bring you some in case you might be hungry.”
He ran hot eyes over her robe-clad figure. The thinness of the robe left little to the imagination. “I’m definitely hungry, though not for cookies.”
She laughed and perched on the step next to him. “You’ll have to wait for that until our baby is sleeping.”
“Our baby?”
With a nod, she indicated the puppy growling at a terra-cotta pot. “Our baby.”
Sweat broke out on Rand’s lower back at the same time he went cold. Babies. He hadn’t thought along those lines other than to use protection to prevent another unwanted Crandall. Of course, Faith would want marriage and children. Why hadn’t he thought of that before he impulsively showed up with the puppy tonight?
“What’s going on in that head of yours, Randall Crandall? You’ve got a terrified expression happening there.”
While she tried to make the question light and humorous, Rand heard the trepidation. Unable to witness her reaction, he locked onto the exploring Yorkie. “I don’t want marriage and children, Faith.”
Her sharp intake of breath had him wincing. He’d expected hysterics, but instead he received a quiet, “okay.” With a frown tugging at his brow, he drummed up the courage to face her. She was the one who avoided him this time by using the pup’s antics as her focus.
“Trouble, look at me.”
The light had died from her eyes, and in its place was dull pain.
“My not wanting the home and family package was decided a long time ago. It has nothing to do with you.”
She nodded and lowered her eyes, but he’d noted the sheen of tears.
“Faith,” he whispered achingly. “Don’t shut me out.”
“How do we go on from here, Rand?” she managed to croak. “I want the whole shebang. Marriage, two-point-five kids.” She nodded at the dog. “Maybe another pet or two. If it’s not something you’re capable of, how do we move forward?”
His heart started a hard thud, and his palms grew damp. She was calling it quits? Because he didn’t want to get married?
“I love you,” he said, more harshly than intended.
Her head whipped back around to focus her attention on him. “And I love you, too. But sometimes it’s not enough. Not when two people want different things.”
“I want you. Why can’t that be enough?” he demanded.
Large, fat teardrops fell from her eyes. He visually traced their path.
“Your love is enough, Rand. It’s all I want in this world. I doubt I could love anyone as much as I love you. But I can’t help thinking that a year from now, or two, or three, I’ll feel the loss of not having the ceremony to celebrate our commitment to one another.” She inhaled long and slow. “And in another five or ten, as I watch my siblings with their children at family gatherings, am I going to feel hollow inside without one of my own?”
“What if I’m a terrible father? What if I end up being cold and selfish like my own parents were? What if one day, I strike our son or daughter because he or she is whining and demanding and I don’t have the time to deal with the tantrum?”
“And what if you don’t?” She ran her hand the length of his forearm and lightly traced the scars there. “You aren’t your parents, Rand. You’re stronger and more caring. Unlike you, those two monsters were incapable of love. You’ve already proven you’re different.”
“I’m afraid,” he admitted.
“Everyone who wants to do it right, who wants to be a great husband, wife, or parent is.”
“All I know is that since I’ve met you, the world has color. There is no more black and white. No more drab days. I don’t want to lose you, trouble.”
“You’ll never lose me, Randall Crandall,” she whispered. “If not getting married or having children is the price required, I’ll pay it.”
Raw and humbled by her sacrifice, he gathered her into his arms. “Just give me time to come to terms with all of it, okay? Never stop loving me.”
“It’s not possible to not love you.”
He nodded and rested his head on top of hers, unable to speak past the lump in his throat.
EPILOGUE
F aith unlocked the door to her newly renovated Victorian home. Tulip, her two-year-old Yorkie, greeted her at the door with Pepe the Parrot on her back.
“Mother’s home! Mother’s home!” squawked Pepe. “Pepe needs a kiss! Pepe needs a kiss!”
Obligingly, she squatted and puckered her lips. Pepe delivered his equivalent of a bird kiss, hopped off Tulip, and beat a hasty retreat as fast as he could waddle away.
“I suppose it’s your turn, Tulip?” she asked and picked up her fur baby, cradling the cute canine against her chest.
“What about us?” Rand’s beloved deep voice drifted to her from where he rested one shoulder against the frame of the kitchen opening. In his arms was their two-month-old son, Ryan.
“I’m saving the best for last,” she laughed.
They met in the middle and shared a long, toe-curling kiss.
“Hello, wife.”
“Hello, husband. How was our colicky son today?”
“Better. What did the doctor say?” He nodded toward her belly.
“Apparently, we are going to have Irish twins.”
“You’re pregnant?”
Faith nodded and smiled, sure of what his reaction would be once he was over the shock. It turned out, Randall Crandall had a heart as big as the Grand Canyon and always had love for another addition to their ever-expanding family.
“I didn’t know it was possible so soon after the first one. What happened to the old wives’ tale of not getting pregnant while nursing?”
“Yeah, that would be a big lie now, wouldn’t it?” Her sister Hope cut in from somewhere behind Rand. “The proof is in the pudding, hot stuff. You’ve got some serious swimmers there.”
Dancing blue eyes met hers and winked. “Have I told you how big a pain in my ass your sister is?”
Hope’s brow shot up. “That’s the last time I answer your call to help with a crying baby.”
“Did I say pain in the ass? No, I meant—”
“You can’t backpedal your way out of this one, Randall Crandall. You’re just lucky Hope doesn’t have a weapon handy and you happen to be holding her favorite nephew.”
“My only nephew,” Hope clarified and gave Faith a tight hug. “Congratulations on your news. Mom is going to be ecstatic. Three grand babies in a year!”
“Three? Who else is having a baby?”
From the glow on Hope’
s face, the answer was obvious. The sisters squealed and hugged.
“Shhh, you’ll puncture the baby’s eardrums!” Rand scolded softly, rocking their son and running the tips of his long fingers over Ryan’s mahogany hair.
Both women sighed and teared up at the sight.
Rand rolled his eyes and leaned in to whisper to his son. “Hormones. How about you and I escape this estrogen-fest and have a beer?”
“You are not giving my son beer, Randall Crandall. Not until his twenty-first birthday.”
“Haven’t you heard of beer/milk? It’s all the rage for babies under a year,” he teased.
“I’ve got your beer/milk,” she muttered.
Pepe waddled his way into the foyer. “Papa needs a kiss! Papa needs a kiss!”
“Too true, Pepe. Papa does need a kiss,” Rand agreed. He leaned in to capture Faith’s lips.
LATER THAT EVENING, after their son was settled in his crib, Rand pulled Faith back against him to spoon and rested a hand over her lower abdomen.
“I can hardly believe it.”
She twisted to gaze up into his face. “No regrets?”
“Not a one. Not ever,” he assured her. And he found he truly meant it.
With each passing day, the memories of his childhood faded, replaced by the love and laughter of the Fiore family. Isabella had welcomed him into the fold with open arms and a never-ending supply of lasagna.
He dropped a light kiss on her forehead. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For loving me. For being patient with my fears and not turning me away the night I came begging for forgiveness with Tulip in tow.”
“I love you, Randall Crandall.”
“And I love you, Faith Crandall.”
She snuggled back against him and closed her eyes.
“Are you falling asleep on me? I thought we’d explore that sex slave thing.”
“Mmm. I’m only taking a little nap. Wake me in an hour and I’m all yours.”
For the next sixty minutes, he watched her as she slept, his heart full. A soft mewl sounded through the baby monitor, and Rand inched out of bed, careful not to wake his sleeping wife.
He spoke softly as he lifted his precious son. “Hey, little man. I thought we had an agreement that you were going to start sleeping through the night. Your mama needs all the rest she can get.”
Faith’s arms encircled him from behind. “I think you must be the most considerate man in the world.”
“Nah. It’s for selfish purposes only. The more rested and happy you are, the more willing you are to put out.”
Her snort had him grinning. “You, Randall Crandall, are incorrigible.”
“Just the way you like me, trouble.”
From somewhere below stairs came a squawk. “Papa needs a kiss!”
“You’re going to be sorry you ever taught Pepe to say that.”
“Never,” Rand laughed and swooped in to capture her mouth.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
Thank you for taking the time to read ONE WISH. Don’t miss the other stories in the Fiore Vineyard Series, PICTURE THIS and RETURN HOME.
Be sure to check out my Amazon Author Page, where you can find all my current releases.
Also, sign up for my newsletter for future updates, contests and book release dates.
You can find my online media sites here:
Website: www.tmcromer.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/tmcromer
Reader Group: www.facebook.com/groups/tmcromerfanpage
St. Helena Vineyard Kindle World: www.facebook.com/groups/StHelenaVineyardKindleWorld
Twitter: www.twitter.com/tmcromer
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tmcromer
Table of Contents
Dedication
Table of Contents
From Marina Adair
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
A Note From The Author
