“I love you too,” she says, and I kiss her deeply.
Slowly we break apart. I love this woman, her taste, her touch. I love that she’s all mine to do with what I want. She’s beautiful and smart and turning into a powerful woman in her own right. Now she’s a little rich, and I can’t wait to see what she does with that money.
“I want to stay Erin McGrath, if that’s okay,” she says softly.
“Good. I want that too.” I drop down to one knee suddenly, grinning my head off. “I want that so much that I went out and got you something.”
“Griffin.” She puts her hands over her mouth.
I pull the ring from my pocket. I open the box and show it to her.
The engagement ring is huge and cost a fucking small fortune, but she’s so worth it. She takes it and I slip it onto her finger. She gasps, staring at it.
“We skipped the engagement, but I figured you’d want a ring anyway,” I say.
She shakes her head, totally shocked.
“You deserve it,” I say kissing her. “You’ve been through enough. It’s time to be happy.”
“You make me happy,” she says, and kisses me again.
I didn’t know I needed this. I went through my whole life thinking I was fine alone, that I didn’t need a wife or a girlfriend. And then Lacey came along, and I realized the importance of family. Erin is family now, she’s my wife and my partner, and I can’t wait to grow with her.
She’ll be a great mother to Lacey. She’ll be a great wife to me. I know I can count on her, and she can count on me. I’ll support her through everything, and I’ll always make her feel good.
I never imagined this would happen. But I couldn’t see my life without her.
30
Erin
Two Years Later
I glance at the clock and sigh. It’s past seven already, and I was supposed to be heading home two hours ago, but I haven’t been able to step away from work.
Sometimes, I wonder why the heck I brought this on myself. But even in the worst low moments, I still wouldn’t change anything for the world.
I finish up the report I’m typing and send it off before leaning back in my chair. The clients aren’t going to be happy that I’m emailing them so late, but at least it’s finished. They’ll be too busy going over the data to care about anything else, hopefully.
I stand up and stretch. My belly pokes against the edge of the desk and I can’t help but laugh. No matter how hard I try, I just can’t get used to being so pregnant. I’m pushing month seven now, and I feel like I’m ready to burst.
I head around the desk and start to pack my bag, but before I can finish, there’s a knock at my office door. I’m surprised, because I didn’t think anyone else was still working. Here at the Fisher Consortium, which is a branch of the Numbers Group, we try and make sure all of our employees get out the door by five or six at the latest. Griffin and I both understand the importance of spending time with the family. Well, for everyone except for the boss, of course. I get to work long, hard hours, but I like it. I want to do it.
Then again, I can’t wait for maternity leave. Mostly I just can’t wait to be done with being pregnant and start being a mother.
“Yes?” I call out.
The door opens and a little hurricane flies at me. I laugh as Lacey knocks into my legs. Three and a half years old and still a bundle of energy. “What are you doing here, little girl?” I ask her.
“Daddy brought me!”
Griffin follows her into the room, grinning. He’s wearing his work clothes still, but I can tell he’s been home, since Lacey is with him.
“Hey, you.” He walks over and gives me a soft kiss.
“What are you two doing here?” I ask.
“Just came to check on you. Working late?”
“Just finished,” I say. “How’s my little booger doing?”
Lacey laughs and squirms as I tickle her, and Griffin watches, smiling the whole time.
We never divorced. We just never wanted to. It made more sense to both of us if we stayed married. Maybe we got married at first for the wrong reasons, but quickly we saw that there was something very real between us, and neither of us could deny it.
And so I become Griffin’s wife for real, and Lacey’s mother. A year after Griffin acquired my father’s company, he came to me about running it, which I thought I wasn’t qualified for. Griffin talked me into it, and so far running the Consortium has been one of the best parts of my life.
Of course, I have an even better part coming up. I’m a mother to Lacey, and soon I’ll be mother to a new little baby boy or girl. I like to be surprised, and so I refused to let Griffin find out, much to his chagrin.