“What if I hate it?”
“As long as you’ve given it a fair shot,” Ryan said, “then we’ll talk about it and figure it out. But you’re going to college in two years, so learning to adapt to change now wouldn’t be a bad thing.”
“If it really, really sucked, I could move back and live with Dad.”
“Yeah, you could,” Ryan said. “Though I’d like to think living with me wouldn’t really, really suck.”
Nick blushed, giving a nervous laugh. “That’s not really what I meant. Just that... Mom, like he said, I’m going to college in two years. I have my dad so I can visit him and Whitford when I want and if I really hate it in Brookline, I can stay with Dad and Jody. You can’t make a decision for the whole rest of your life based on, like, less than two years of mine. I’m a kid. I’m resilient.”
Lauren made a hiccupping sound, trying really hard not to bawl, and she groped at the coffee table for the tissue box.
“Wow,” Ryan said. “That’s really wise and insightful for your age.”
Nick flashed him a grin. “I think I heard it on TV. Maybe one of those Lifetime or Hallmark movies Mom watches.”
“And they say watching television doesn’t teach kids anything.” Ryan looked him in the eye. “Nick, would you like to be my stepson and come live in Brookline with me?”
After only a couple of seconds, Nick nodded. “Yeah. That would be cool.”
Ryan turned back to Lauren. “See, that’s how it’s done. I proposed to your son and he said yes.”
“I’ve never moved out of Whitford, either. What if I hate Brookline?”
“You sure as hell can’t go live with Dean.”
The laughter that bubbled up surprised her and eased some of the tension that had been threatening to suffocate her.
“I think you’ll both love it there,” he said. “But if you don’t—if we can’t be a strong, happy family there—then we’ll do what we have to do. I don’t want to sell my company and it’s not just about contracts and employees. It’s mine. I built it and I’m damn proud of it. But if it comes down to Kowalski Custom Builders or us, I’ll choose us. I will always choose the three of us.”
She liked that. The three of them. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. Marry me, Lauren. I had to walk away from you once, but I can’t do it again. I don’t have the strength for that.”
And, this time, she couldn’t watch him go. “I choose us, too. I choose you. It’s that simple.”
He blew out a breath as though he’d been holding it for a lifetime, before leaning in to kiss her. “Thank you. I loved being your you know, whatever, but I can’t wait to be your husband.”
“I think we should celebrate with pizza,” Nick contributed to the moment.
“I’ve had chili in the slow cooker all day,” she said. Then she watched her future husband and her son share a look and knew she was doomed.
“Chili’s always better reheated the second day,” Ryan said. “If we get pizza now, you guys can have even better chili for supper tomorrow. And I can take some in a container to heat up, too.”
She laughed, unable to resist that look in his eyes. “Fine. But I want mushrooms on it.”
Ryan leaned in and kissed her again. “For you, and only for you, I’ll pick off the mushrooms.”
*