Page 80 of What it Takes
Epilogue
October
“Keep your eyes closed. No peeking.”
“I’m either going to fall asleep or get carsick if you don’t let me open my eyes soon, Ben,” Laney said. They’d been a few minutes from the lodge when he’d told her to close her eyes, though she couldn’t imagine why. The party at the Northern Star wasn’t a surprise, and it wasn’t for her. They had babies to celebrate.
She felt the Camaro slow and then make a left turn, which confused her. The turn off to the lodge was a right from this direction. Then it came to a stop and the engine went silent.
“Don’t look. I’m coming around to get you.”
She played along because Ben was obviously excited, and kept her eyes closed as he opened her door and took her hand to help her out. His other hand went to her back as he guided her. Autumn leaves crunched under their feet and her pulse quickened as the pieces started falling into place in her mind.
“Open your eyes,” he said.
It wasn’t the cream-colored cape with blue shutters and deep porch that made tears spring to her eyes. They’d looked at the house—with its two-car garage, three bedrooms and white picket fence—several times, and she’d fallen in love with it. But the owners were offering it for rent with an option to buy, and it had access to the ATV and snowmobile trails, so there had been some competition for the property.
But today, sitting in the shade of the porch, were two bright pink Adirondack chairs.Herchairs, which they’d put in Josh’s barn when they winterized her camper and she’d moved into Ben’s apartment.
“We got it?” she asked, almost afraid to believe it. “Really?”
“Welcome home, Laney.” She threw her arms around his neck and he kissed her. Then he laced his fingers through hers and led her across the lawn to the front steps. “They’re still moving out, but they said I could put the chairs here because I couldn’t wait to tell you. And I know how much you wanted this house, so I set up the appointment for us to sign the papers and get the keys for next week.”
“Thank you, Ben.” She would have thrown her arms around him again and sobbed into his shirt, but he nudged her toward one of the chairs and she sat. “This is perfect.”
When he sat in the other chair, which was close enough so he could hold her hand across the distance, Laney breathed in the crisp fall air and looked out over their yard. Yellow and orange leaves danced in the breeze, and she could picture the kids they would have diving into piles Ben raked up.
“Close your eyes again,” he said. “There’s more.”
“Seriously? More than our house?”
He grinned and nodded. “The house we chose together. But I have a surprise, too. Now close your eyes.”
Once she had, she could tell by the tug on her hand that he’d stood up. And it was only a few seconds before he told her to open her eyes again.
He was on one knee in front of her, her hand still in his. In the other was a small velvet box, open to show a beautiful diamond solitaire. When their eyes met, he exhaled shakily and she realized he was nervous.
“I love you, Laney. I love this life we’re making for ourselves and I want you to be my wife.” He paused for a second, swallowing hard. “Maybe I should have waited so it wouldn’t seem like marrying me goes with the house, because it doesn’t.”
“Yes.” She pushed forward in the chair, wanting to be closer to him. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
He’d barely gotten the ring on her finger before she threw her arms around him. He was off-balance and ended up on his back on the wooden floor, with her straddling him. Once she’d kissed him until his fingers curled in her hair and he moaned against her mouth, she broke it off and smiled down at him.
“If we already had keys to our house, I’d take you inside and show you just how much I love you.”
“I see how much you love me every time you smile at me like that,” he said. “And we have a party to get to.”
She’d forgotten they were supposed to be on their way to the lodge. “I hope they don’t mind me sharing our big news at their baby party because there’s no way I can keep it a secret.”
“Trust me, when it comes to family, the more they have to celebrate, the happier they are.”
As she stood and then helped Ben to his feet, she thought about what he’d said.Family.She was already a part of the Northern Star family, even though she’d only been there for a summer. And the connection would only get stronger, since Josh had asked her to stay year-round. They couldn’t pay her a lot, but she didn’t need a lot and it was enough. She’d learned you couldn’t put a price on the kind of happiness that made you fall asleep with a smile every night.
As they walked back to the car, she looked over her shoulder. “I can’t believe it’s really ours.”
“Those chairs weigh a ton. They’re staying.” He lifted her hand to kiss the ring on her finger. “And next week, we’ll spend our first night together in it.”
She was still smiling when they pulled up to the lodge. Because of the babies, the party was inside, but the doors and windows were open and they could hear the chatter of happy voices as they walked up to the porch.
