My family.
I leaned over and pressed my forehead to Emma’s watching as her eyes turned up to mine. I smiled down at her, knowing no words in the entirety of any language could communicate the happiness she’d brought into my life. The fullness and purpose I found with her at my side. A flash went off in the corner of my eye and I turned my head, watching as our nanny took pictures of the moment.
Then I reached down and captured Emma’s lips as the flashes continued to roll.
Twenty-Eight
Emma
“Happy birthday, dear Zachy and Brenty and Harry. Happy birthday to you!”
My boys stared at the birthday cake as if it were an alien. We all stood around as Ryan got behind the three boys and quickly puffed out each candle. Valentina was snapping pictures of the big day and Catherine was arranging the presents so we could get pictures of each of them opening one on their big day. Natasha and Carter brought the kids who were already begging for a slice of cake, and everything felt right.
“Do you want to try and get pictures of them pulling the tissue out of the gift bags?” Valentina asked.
“I’d like to try. But it’s not a massive deal if it doesn’t happen,” I said with a smile. “I’m just glad you’re here, Val.”
“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world.”
Valentina, after a seven-month struggle to balance her professional life and her addiction, decided of her own accord to get sober. She was three months clean, mentally on the mend, and her pharmaceutical company was finally correcting itself in the marketplace. She reaffirmed her values to helping communities worse off than ours, and slowly but surely she was coming around the kids more often to visit and spend time with them.
And for personal therapy, she had signed up for photography courses to help her with her anxiety issues.
Valentina snapped pictures of the boys pulling out the tissue while Ryan divvied out the cake. Everyone sat down around the beautiful dining room table and I took to serving everyone drinks. The boys had their sippy cups full of milk, the kids had their pick of juice, and the adults had their pick of punches.
“If I could have everyone’s attention please,” Ryan said as he clinked his glass, “I have something I’d like to say.”
“Attention, everyone! The big mouth wants to speak!” Carter exclaimed.
“First of all,” Ryan said as he shot his friend a look, “I want to thank you all for being so flexible. With the boys getting sick a few weeks ago and us having to cancel their birthday party, it means a lot to us that you would all reschedule along with us.”
“We wouldn't miss this for the world,” Natasha said.
“Free booze. What could be better?” Catherine said with a grin.
“However,” Ryan said with a chuckle, “there’s one more surprise in store for the day.”
I furrowed my brow as I sat up in my seat.
“Emma. My love. My beautiful swan. You’ve been so busy with the children and our home and your tutoring services that we haven’t had a chance to talk about our wedding.”
“Yeah. You guys haven’t even set a date,” Valentina said.
“Ryan?” I asked. “What are you doing?”
“Emma, you’ve done so much for me. For us, and our family. You’ve sacrificed the whole of what a woman can-”
I watched tears rise in his eyes before he cleared his throat.
“You’ve sacrificed everything someone can to make this work with us. And I don’t want another second to go by without you as my wife.”
I watched him come over and he held his hand out for me. I stood up, raising my thumb to catch the tear rolling down his cheek. I was worried. I had no idea what was going on and what had Ryan so worked up.
“What is it, sweetheart?” I asked.
“Marry me, Emma,” he said.
“I think you’ve already asked me that question once.”