Page 164 of Tempting Miles
“She’ll need to remain in the NICU for a few weeks,” she continues. “Right now, she just needs time to grow stronger before she’s ready to come home with you both.”
The wordweekslands like a punch straight to my chest.
There’s no way I’m leaving this hospital without my baby girl.
“I’m going to let you rest,” the doctor says as she sanitizes her hands again, “but I’ll ask the nurses to bring a walker and a wheelchair so you can go see baby MacAllister as soon as you’re steady on your feet.”
After shaking hands with Miles, she quietly leaves the room.
“I can’t wait for you to meet our perfect baby,” Miles says, tears spilling freely down his cheeks now. “She’s a fucking miracle.”
A shaky breath leaves him as he wipes at his face.
“I’m sorry, boss. For a minute there… I thought I was going to lose you both.”
“Like you said,” I whisper as I extend my hand toward him, “she’s a miracle.”
His hand finds mine, warm and steady.
“And I don’t think you realize it yet, but I think you just found the perfect name for our girl.”
His deep blue eyes brighten.
“She’s a miracle.” I smile through tears. “Our Milagro.”
I say the world slowly, hoping he recognizes it from all the Spanish he’s been secretly learning.
“Milagros Marie MacAllister,” he says right away, like the name was always meant to belong to her.
Emotion swells so hard in my chest that my lips start trembling.
“Miles MacAllister,” I murmur. “The man that you are…”
He leans down like he’s going to kiss me, but pauses at the last second.
“Why?” A cocky grin spreads across his face despite the tears still clinging to his lashes. “Because I learned Spanish? Some people might call that trying too hard.”
I laugh softly through my tears.
He shrugs. “I simply call it Miles MacAllister being stupidly in love with Penny Levine… soon-to-be MacAllister.”
His free hand disappears into his pocket before reappearing with a ring so gorgeous my brain completely short-circuits.
“I swear I planned to do this at the rink,’ he says, lowering himself onto one knee beside my hospital bed. “The place where our relationship started. But I guess life had other plans for us.”
A watery laugh escapes me. I press my lips together as another tear slips free, overwhelmed by this man and the life we built out of absolute chaos.
“Penélope Marie Levine,” he says, fighting for composure, “there’s no one else in the world who gets me the way you do. No one else who makes me feel like I can be fully, unapologetically, me.” He looks down at the ring before meeting my gaze again. “Would you do me the honor of marrying me?”
He places the ring against my finger, but doesn’t slide it on just yet.
“Yes,” I cry. “A million times yes!”
I kick my feet excitedly in the air and instantly regret it as the anesthesia continues wearing off.
A soft laugh escapes Miles before he carefully slides the ring into place and cups my face in his big hands.
“Te amo por siempre, sugar.”
