“We can definitely practice making babies for as long as you’d like,” she replied, and that was all he needed to hear.

To him, this date had been not only successful but marked the true beginning of the rest of their lives.

The air wasalive with energy as everyone in the house kept their eyes glued to the TV. Tonight was the championship game, and The Infernos had made it and were currently up two points.

Kenna had decided shortly after they made things official that she wasn’t ready to attend any more games of Damien’s because of the crowds. Although the shooting at the theater was so different from the mass shooting at the high school, it had set her back a ton. Even with security and her own suite to watch the game, she didn’t feel safe. She and Skylar were still taking baby steps to getting back to normal. Kenna was confident they would get there one day.

Taking her eyes off the screen for a moment to look around the room, Kenna smiled. All of her loved ones were there. The previous week, she and Damien hosted a barbeque so their families could officially meet. It was then she sat her parents down and told them about the shooting at the theater. She’d put it off long enough, but she knew one of the steps to healingwas being honest about what she needed, and she needed her parents. Her father had been in town for a little over a week now, and he even mentioned staying a while, which was huge for him. He sat next to Cam on one side of the couch, while her mom and David sat on the other side. Kenna and Skylar sat in the middle while Alanzo sat in front of them on the floor. Annalise and Grayson, Jendaya’s husband, shared the love seat across the room.

Everyone had the option to go to the game in person, especially since it was right there in Ellwood, and who knew when the championship would be in their hometown again? The only person that actually went was Jendaya though. She would forever be Damien’s biggest cheerleader, and Kenna was completely at peace with that. She absolutely loved their friendship and the way they effortlessly co-parented. Skylar was made with pure love. It may not have been romantic love, but it was love all the same.

Skylar and Kenna wanted to stay home and watch the game for obvious reasons. Annalise didn’t feel comfortable just yet bringing Alanzo into large crowds. He still had nightmares and was in therapy for the horrors he witnessed, but other than his nightmares, he seemed okay. She just worried that something might trigger him, which Kenna understood. Now that she was working to pull herself out of her funk, she had been spending a lot of time with Alanzo, making sure he got multiple sources of love and comfort.

Everyone else stayed back in support of those too emotionally wounded to brave an overcrowded arena. Kenna loved each and every one of them for that. Love flowed through the room, making Kenna feel warm and fuzzy.

It had been a month since she and Damien made things official and she moved in. Last week, she officially got back to work. A few days ago, she and Skylar braved the grocery storealone. Things were starting to feel right again, and that was all she could wish for.

“Oh shit, there he go, there he go!” Grayson cheered while Kenna’s dad clapped, causing Kenna’s eyes to snap back to the TV.

There, she saw her man with the ball. Dax ran alongside him, hyping him up and playing defense. They were in the fourth quarter, and the opposing team somehow tied to them in the time she had looked away. Her eyes flickered to the corner of the screen, where she noticed there were only four seconds left.

Damien skillfully dribbled the ball up the court, and at the last second, shot from the free throw line.

Cheers erupted when it sank into the net just as the buzzer sounded.

Kenna squealed and kicked her feet, narrowly missing Alanzo, who didn’t mind at all because he was busy flopping around on the floor, looking like he had made up his own rendition of the worm.

“That’s ring number three, baby!” Grayson cheered.

Kenna giggled in delight. Maybe she had been wrong. Grayson was definitely Damien’s number one fan.

Suddenly, Kenna started crying. It hit her out of nowhere, and she couldn’t stop or hide the tears, even though she desperately wanted to.

Of course, her mother was the first to notice and went to Kenna’s side immediately. Alarmed, Skylar clung to Kenna, repeatedly asking what was wrong.

Everyone stopped celebrating and looked at her, and all she could do was sniffle and then laugh.

“I’m fine,” she managed to say. “I promise. These are happy tears. I’m just so…happy.” She cried hard, wishing she could truly convey her emotions to everyone around her.

She had been through so much in her life. A lot of it was bad, but there was also a lot of good. She had lost someone she loved, and she had seen more death than any soft hearted person like herself should have, but she also knew love. She surrounded herself with it every single day. She had so many reasons to get up and choose happiness from that day on for the rest of her life.

Those were the thoughts that stayed with her the rest of the night as she and her family celebrated. She allowed her happy tears to fall as they pleased and shooed anyone away that tried to comfort her when she cried. They didn’t fully believe her that she didn’t need comforting at that moment. She was crying for all the good things in her life and for the beautiful future she was building with the people she loved. All was right in her world.

Long after she said goodbye to everyone and made sure Skylar was tucked into bed, she thought about her wonderful life and thanked God for everything that led her to that moment.

Snuggled in bed was where Damien found her late into the night. She melted into him after he climbed into bed with her.

“Congratulations, Champ.” She turned around to face him before placing a kiss on his nose and then on his lips. “How does it feel to not only be retired, but to have won your team one last championship?”

Kenna saw the sadness swimming in his eyes, but she also saw the brightness that held their future. Her baby would need some extra love over the next few days, and she had no issues delivering on that. Kenna knew that letting go of this career that had been the entirety of his life for the last fifteen years wouldn’t be easy for him, but she also knew he would be just fine. She would make sure of it.

“It feels amazing, baby,” he whispered back before pulling a small box from under the covers. Kenna couldn’t see all that well in the darkness, but her heart knew what that box was before her mind did, and a tranquil calmness filled her as she staredinto his eyes. “It didn’t feel right being the only one to get a ring tonight. I know it’s soon, baby, but I didn’t want to hold on to this any longer. What do you say, Kenna James? Can I change your last name? Will you be my wife?”

She knew the answer before he even spoke a word. This beautiful man had quite literally saved her from herself. There was no way in hell she would ever let him go. Marrying him would only allow another piece of the puzzle to fall into place for her, and then who knew… maybe they could start working on those babies he made a point to mention every other day.

Without missing a beat, she whispered the word that would secure the happy future she had been thinking about all day, and she couldn’t wait to watch it unfold.

“Yes.”