"I like it." He nodded.
Chapter 24
She'd read online that skin-to-skin contact was important, but she was stunned to find that there wasn’t anything in this world that could be more rewarding than feeling her son’s squirming body against her chest as she looked down into his scrunched little face. Luke and Suzette flanked her on either side, both cooing over little Michael and commenting on what a strong little boy he already seemed to be.
And, of course, how handsome he was.
Which, to be fair, was an honest assessment.
His pink skin might have been crinkled, but there was no doubting his beautiful face was his father’s, or that his mop of black hair wouldn’t look just like Luke’s when he got older.
“He looks just like you,” Luke said. “He’s gorgeous.”
Suzette grinned at them. “I think I’m going to grab some coffee. Anybody need anything?”
They shook their heads, and when she’d finally left the room, Tawny stared from her newborn son to his father and thought about exactly how stressful and scary and wonderful her day had been. About the choices she’d made.
And about Luke…always about Luke.
She'd put him in a terrible position today--not once, but twice. First, by leaving him, and now by confessing her love in the middle of giving labor. She knew she ought to give him an out, some way to back away from the mess she'd created, but looking at him now...
She'd never loved anyone so much in her life. He was the man who'd given her her beautiful, perfect son. He was the person who'd made all of this possible. And the person he was? The way he cared about his family, his dreams?
But that was selfish. She had to be practical, now more than ever.
"Luke..." she started, smoothing the hair on her baby's head. "I'm sorry for what I did. Earlier and just now, too. I shouldn't have told you all that in that way. You were right. I should have waited until there was time for you to really think over your options."
"There's nothing to think about.” He shook his head. "I just don't understand why you thought you had to leave."
"I wanted you to follow your dreams. To open your bike shop and get out of Alhouette. I know that's what you wanted."
"All I want is you and little Michael." He rested his huge hand on the baby's chubby arm and stroked the soft skin with his thumb. "I was going to propose to you today, and it had nothing to do with the baby. Tawny, I've loved you since the first moment I set eyes on you, and whatever dreams I had before, they don't mean anything if you're not there with me through it all. I can't imagine my life without you."
She choked back more tears, trying not to let the emotions of this day overwhelm her. "Are you still proposing?"
With a half-smile, he sank to one knee beside the bed and took her hand in his. "Tawny Mitchell, I love you. I love the way you care and the way you laugh and the way you put other people first. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and I would be proud to call you my wife."
She gasped, then gave him a shaky nod.
“But I left the ring at home,” he said with a laugh.
"I don't care," she cried. "I know it's perfect. You're perfect. And I love you."
Her tear fell onto Michael’s forehead and she hastily wiped it away as a nurse entered the room.
"Excuse me, we need to take this little guy to be weighed and to run some standard tests, but we’ll bring him back ASAP, all right?"
They both nodded again as the nurse swept the baby up into her arms and carried him from the room. When she'd gone, Tawny turned to Luke--her future husband-to-be, she realized with a thrill--and spoke.
"I had an idea," she said.
"What's that?"
She grabbed her smartphone from the nearby end table, ignoring the soreness and the way Luke rushed in to help her.
"Careful," he said, and she waved him off.
"I just pushed a human being through my body. I'm pretty sure I can manage to twist." She rolled her eyes and he laughed.
"Fair enough."
Scrolling through her social media feed, she found the private message Suzette had sent her and opened it for him to see. "Suzette found this place. I know it'll take a little bit of doing, but it has good bones and that big shed in the back could be the perfect bike shop."
"I don't know." He frowned.
"Why? What's wrong? Because it's in Alhouette?"
"There's nothing wrong with being in Alhouette. It was just always something I said. What I thought was the mark of success. To get out of this little town. But the older I get, I’m starting to realize that I don’t need to leave to chase my dream. As long as we’re a little closer to the city, the shop can succeed. And who am I kidding? If we moved this baby far away my mother would kill me anyway. So yeah. Let’s look at it and see how it feels.”