Page 68 of If You Never Come Back

We both do another scan of the room. I catch my mom excitedly whispering to my dad. After finding out I was pregnant, I didn’t think my heart could get any bigger. But right now as I watch my family and friends showing their support for me, it’s almost too much. I am at maximum capacity, in danger of bursting if even one more sweet thing happens.

Wes gazes at me with concern. “You’re not still nauseous, are you?”

I cup my hand against his stubbled cheek. Now that it’s July, he’s shaved his beard in favor of a five o’clock shadow that’s just as dashing.

“I’m good. Luckily my morning sickness has been sticking to the mornings, not all day like some poor moms-to-be.”

He wraps his arms around my waist. “Good. Because after this, I’m taking you out to the diner down the block and we’re having a pancake eating contest to celebrate my girlfriend’s first wildly successful art show.”

I moan. “That sounds amazing.”

He opens his mouth as if to speak, but then clamps it shut.

“What is it?”

“I don’t know if I like the sound of that.”

“The sound of what?”

“Girlfriend.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Let’s ask everyone what they think.”

Wes turns around and calls for the attention of everyone in the room. He steps in front me, his bright smile rivaling the brightness of the track lights above us.

“Everyone, thank you for coming to my brilliant and talented girlfriend Shay’s first art show. I…” He stalls and frowns before turning back to me. “You know, ‘girlfriend’ doesn’t seem like a good enough word to describe what you mean to me anymore.”

He sticks his hand in the inside pocket of his jacket, pulling out a black velvet box. Immediately the tears hit. I have to cup my face with both hands, I’m on the verge of sobbing from pure shock and joy.

Wes drops down to one knee in front of me. The expression on his face is clear now. Hopeful. But he doesn’t need to be. He should know by now I’ll say yes.

“Shay, you made me the happiest man in the world when you told me you were pregnant. Now I want to make you happy forever. I can’t wait to start our family together. Will you marry me?”

I’m nodding before he even gets the words out. Cheers fill the room as he slips a sparkly cushion-cut engagement ring on my finger. He jumps back up to his feet, and pulls me in for a kiss. We stand there hugging for what seems like minutes, a barrage of cheers and congratulations echoing around us.

“How’d I do?” he whispers in my ear.

“You were perfect,” I whisper back.

“So you were surprised then?”

“Stunned.” I glance down at the ring. “It’s gorgeous, Wes. I love it.”

He leans back, taking my face in his hands. His eyes glisten with raw emotion. It’s enough to make me collapse right here on the floor in front of all these people. But I don’t budge because he’s got me. He always will.

As long as we stay in this embrace, everyone around us stays away. It’s like they know this moment is ours and they don’t want to invade just yet.

Wes squeezes me tighter in his arms. “I mean it, Shay. You’ve made me happier than I ever thought I could be. You’re giving me the family I always wanted. It’s…it’s the best feeling in the world.”

The tremble in his voice makes me tear up once more. Because I know without a doubt, he means every word.

“You and our baby, you two are my family. You two are my everything,” he says.

I’m dangerously close to another sob. I try for a joke to keep the tears away before I lose it in front of everyone. “So we’re even worth skipping out on your favorite tequila for these next six months?”

“Beyond worth it, no question.”

I cuddle into him for one last hug before the crowd descends upon us. Nuzzling his neck, I breathe in. “You earned yourself a lifetime of the most expensive stuff after tonight. I don’t care if I have to sell a million paintings, you’re top-shelf tequila worthy.”

He laughs. I close my eyes and soak in his sound, the feel of his body pressed against mine, the joy of this moment, and how it’s light years beyond the joy we’ve shared so far. It’s a new bliss, for our future, our baby, our family, our everything.

He leans back, locking eyes with me once more. In his gaze, I feel like his everything. “I’d go a lifetime without it, as long as I have you,” he says.

“Exactly how I feel.” I pat my stomach once more. “But luckily after the baby comes, we won’t have to choose. We can have both.”

Wes beams. “Sounds like perfection to me.”