Page 373 of The Parkers' Handsome Holiday
And it was the future that I had been dreaming about as well.
EPILOGUE
BAILEY
10 months later
I smiled down at Carson as I rocked her to sleep, singing softly under my breath. Ethan hadn’t wanted to leave the room while his baby sister was still awake, and he had ended up falling asleep on the floor, curled into a ball, a smile on his face. I couldn’t imagine a sweeter picture of family than this.
It only got more perfect as Adam walked into the room and carefully sat next to me on the loveseat. Carson looked curiously at her father, and I imagined that she smiled. Of course, she was still too young to really smile, but I could tell she was and always would be daddy’s little girl.
She was perfect in every way.
“Want me to take over?” Adam asked softly. He still looked chilled, having just come in from outside where he’d been grabbing another stack of firewood, but he was always there to help out, all through my pregnancy and through the first weeks of baby Carson’s life.
I shook my head now, though. “She’s almost asleep,” I said quietly. Then, I nodded towards Ethan. “Unless you want to carry him upstairs.”
Adam grinned and nodded, walking over and scooping our son up off the carpet.
Our son. Over the past ten months, Ethan had really started to feel like he was as much my son as he was Adam’s. This felt like the family I had never really imagined I would get to have. I couldn’t get luckier than this.
Carson’s little eyes finally closed, and I carefully carried her up to her crib, laying her gently down on the flannel sheets. Adam joined me there a couple minutes later, stroking my back and then following me out of the room. He gave me a big hug. “You’re amazing with her,” he said softly.
“Mother’s intuition?” I asked, laughing. “Or is she just an easy baby?”
“I honestly don’t know,” Adam said, shrugging. “Ethan was a pretty easy baby as well, so I feel like I’ve just been spoiled.”
“Guess we probably shouldn’t have another one, then,” I teased. “I don’t know if we could get that lucky again.”
Adam grinned at me. “We’ll see,” he said. We had both talked about having another kid once Carson had grown up a little, but we hadn’t made any firm decisions yet. There were other milestones that Adam and I wanted to hit first.
Like our wedding. I stroked a finger over the engagement ring on my finger. It was getting loose now that I was losing the baby weight and bloating from my pregnancy, but Adam had assured me we would get it resized. He just hadn’t wanted to wait any longer before proposing to me.
I still remembered how excited he had been to ask me to marry him. About as excited as I had been to agree to it.
It seemed like all of the earlier nervousness between us had disappeared. We were both so happy to be together, and we fit together so perfectly. There was no arguing with it. It was meant to be.
“Do you ever regret not taking the job in Europe?” Adam asked suddenly.
I blinked at him in surprise. I hadn’t expected to hear him say anything like that. “Do you regret me not taking it?” I asked, frowning. “I know the money thing has been kind of tight lately, but I’ll be back to work at the resort soon.”
“I’m not worried about that,” Adam said immediately, shaking his head. “I was just wondering if you missed, I don’t know, the adventure of all of it.”
I stared blankly at him and then laughed, shaking my head. “The adventure of all of it?” I asked him. “Adam, we have an infant daughter. And there’s you and Ethan. And the resort. I’ve got plenty of adventure in my life at the moment, believe me.”
Adam looked unconvinced. “I know that you probably planned on, I don’t know, something more in your life,” he said.
I shook my head, though, cutting him off before he could give voice to any more absurd thoughts. “Adam, I am so happy here,” I told him. “I was thinking earlier about how perfect this is. Our family. I don’t need anything more than this.” I paused. “But if you’re really worried about it, maybe we can take a trip somewhere. Next summer, when things aren’t so busy around the resort, and when Carson is a little older.”
That would be a real adventure, I knew. Our first family vacation. I couldn’t imagine anyone I would rather share all of that with.
Adam finally grinned at me. “All right,” he said, pulling me into his arms again and kissing the top of my head. “How’s that ring fitting you anyway?”
“It’s getting a little loose,” I admitted. “I think I’m ready to trade it in for something else.”
Adam looked surprised. “I thought you loved it,” he said, sounding worried.
“It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, after Carson’s face. Or yours. Or Ethan’s,” I said. I grinned at him. “But the reception hall called me today and told me that they had a cancellation. I already checked with Ian and your dad, and they’ll be able to make it. What do you say to getting married at the end of this month?”
