Page 22 of April is for Asher

“The one by the airport?” I ask just to be sure.

“Yep, that’s the one. Good luck. You’re going to need it.”

After giving me a hug, she goes inside and I leave for the park. In all honesty, I’ll take any luck I can get.

When I arrive at the park, I can see why she chose to come here. It’s beautiful and overlooks the city. Not only is it breathtaking, but you get the views of the airplanes flying in.

It takes me a minute to find her car and thankfully, she’s inside of it, which makes getting to her to talk easier. Pulling in beside her, I’m careful not to block her view. Then I get out, knocking on her window. She doesn’t seem startled, which means she probably saw me pull up.

Our eyes lock as I wait for her to roll down the window. Or flip me the bird and tell me to go away or start screaming at me. Anything at all.

Finally, she tilts her head towards the passenger side and I hear locks pop up. When I get in, her car smells of her and it instantly makes my heart ache to have her close. Yet there’s so much distance between us and it instantly makes my heart ache to have her so close but so much distance between us.

“How did you find me?”she asks.

“Your sister told me you’d be here. Why didn’t you tell me about your father?”

She just shrugs her shoulder and I know that this is a hard topic for her.

“I completely understand the need and the desire to protect our child from ever being hurt. The thought of you being here in Billings and me not being with my child every day kills me. I don’t want to miss anything. Not the first steps, nor the first words, or the first smile. Every moment I want to be a part of their lives. I don’t want to miss games or dance recitals or graduations, nothing.

I also know I can sit here and spout that off. All day long. But it’s not going to mean anything until you give me a chance to prove it. But don’t underestimate me, Jenna. I will prove it.”

By now, the sun is starting to set and lighting up the city of Billings with brilliant colors.

“Come on. Let’s go sit at that bench over there and get some fresh air,” I tell her.

Once we’re seated and enjoying the view, I tell her what I’ve done. “In order to spend more time with you two, I’ve hired more help at the Refuge. But I can’t promise that I won’t be late to some things. If I have an emergency call, I never know how those calls will go. Sometimes they can take me thirty minutes and sometimes they can take me three hours. But just know that I will be doing my best to be there.”

“Asher, I don’t need you to promise. I just need you to understand that my pregnancy hormones have been making me a bit crazy. After talking with my sister at dinner, I have come to realize that you’re not like my dad. I don’t want our son to ever have that disappointment or heartbreak.”

At her words, my heart stops for a moment.

“It’s a boy? We’re having a boy?” I ask, needing to make sure I heard her correctly.

Smiling, she says, “I have ultrasound photos in my purse.”

I pull her in for a hug and she snuggles into me. Just like she would melt into me like she used to do when we would cuddle in bed.

Kissing the top of her head, I enjoy having her by my side, and I’m not willing to let her go just yet. While I keep one arm around her, I reach into my pocket and pull out the house key, the one that she left, along with the note on the dining room table. Then I hold it out for her.

“All right. I’m going to take my shot here because I don’t want there to ever be a question about whether I want you. First off, I really want you to move back in with me permanently. Both you and our son I want living with me. Also, the doctor’s office in town has an available nurse position. While it’s not the promotion that you came here for, I think it would be perfect for you. Not to mention that you’d be great in that role. You’d get to know everyone in town and make a difference in Mustang Mountain. Since you’d know everyone sooner or later, you could really be able to make a change and help families. It will be more one on one than here in Billings.

But even if you decide not to move in permanently and take the job. I’d like for you to have a key so that you can come visit anytime you want. No notice required.”

“Luna had sent me a text with the job opening earlier today,” Jenna says. ”After the talk with my sister, I sent in my resume before I even left the parking lot of the restaurant. On the way here, I got a phone call. The day after tomorrow, I have an interview at the doctor’s office in Mustang Mountain,” she continues with a smile on her face.

It takes a minute for what that means to sink in. Before I even showed up, she was making plans to come back to me!

“I love you, Jenna, and our son so much. Every day I plan to spend trying to convince you to agree to marry me. So I’m putting you on notice. You take as long as you need to say yes. Because once you make that commitment, you are mine. I need you to understand that.”

“Well, it’s not going to take very much convincing,” she says with a shy smile.

Once again, my heart once starts racing.

I’ve taken several chances today and they’ve paid off. What the hell is one more? I pull out the ring that’s been in my pocket for a solid week now and drop to one knee in front of her.

“The day of the ultrasound, that accident screwed up more than one thing. By then, I realized I was madly in love with you and didn’t want you to leave. Nor did I want you to take this job in Billings. I wanted you to stay. Right after the ultrasound, I was going to ask you to marry me, but I didn’t get the chance. So, I’m going to ask you now. That night of your sister’s bachelorette party, there was a connection between us. It was strong and intense, unlike anything I have ever felt before.

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