And I’ll never need a single thing again.
Epilogue
Nine months later...
Ashley
I’m lying in a hospital bed, grinning like an idiot as I hold my child in my arms. He looks up at me with beautiful blue eyes and I can tell already he’s going to be a daddy’s boy. I cradle him close to my chest. The labor was long and hard, but it was all so worth it to be able to hold my baby boy in my arms.
“I can’t believe he’s ours,” Wade says in a husky tone, looking down at his son with pride. I lean over to kiss him gently.
“And I guess this is our nine month anniversary too.”
Wade smiles. “It’s also our eight month wedding anniversary.”
I smile, closing my eyes and remembering how Wade asked my father for permission to marry me on the day they met. Then he got down on one knee and professed his love for me right in front of my parents. I know they were shocked, but of course, I said yes. How could I turn down a proposal from the love of my life? We married a month later in a small, but beautiful ceremony. I had my dream dress, my dream day, and my dream man. It was perfect. Even my parents said so.
I know they must’ve had some doubts about me and Wade. There’s a twenty-year age gap between us, and it’s not exactly subtle. But after an evening of dinner and drinks in their company, I know they began to understand how much we loved and cared for one another. It’s evident to anyone with their eyes open. Wade barely ever takes his eyes off me and I never leave his side if I can help it.
Of course, things haven’t been easy with Wade’s line of work. His job is dangerous, and I do worry about him when he’s out on a call. But he works so hard, and he’s saved so many lives. I’d never deny him the career he loves. So I let him go off to work, even when my heart is aflutter with nerves. But each time he leaves, he kisses and tells me that his love for me will always bring him home.
And that’s how I know we’re soulmates. Because it’s been true every time.
I hand our baby over to Wade so he can rock him. Our baby looks even tinier in his big strong arms, and it’s so endearing to me. Wade is gentle as he rocks our baby, treating him with even more care than he does me. He can be gentle when he wants to be, but sometimes I’ll look at him and have hot, sexy flashbacks from the previous night when he last fucked me senseless. Sometimes, our intense sex sessions leave me weak in the knees for days. And as soon as he leaves for work, I write down everything he makes me feel each day, and I channel it into my stories. Since meeting him, my stories have certainly taken a more erotic turn...but I can’t help myself. He inspires me to write the naughtiest things.
“You drifted off for a second there,” Wade says. “What were you thinking about?”
“You,” I tell him. He smirks before continuing to rock our baby, kissing him on the forehead.
“What do you think we should call him? We thought we’d know his name when we first saw him, didn’t we?”
“Yeah, but nothing is coming to mind right now. None of the names we had picked out seem good enough for our little prince.”
“He deserves the best name,” Wade says in agreement. “It’ll come to us at some point. We have all the time in the world to decide.”
He’s right. He’s our baby now forever. This is the first step into the rest of our lives. The thought makes me feel a little nervous. What if I’m not ready for this? Motherhood is difficult. I knew that from the start. But I don’t want to do anything to ruin our beautiful child or his life. I want to be the perfect mom.
I feel Wade’s hand slip into mine. He always seems to know the right thing to do and say when it comes to me. I look up at him and he offers me a smile.
“You’re going to be the best mother in the world.”
I blush. There he goes again. Always getting it right. This is why I married him. This is why I knew from day one that I wanted to be with him forever. Everything we’ve done together since has just seemed so right, so perfect. He knows me like the back of his hand. And now, we have a child together and I have to remind myself that I’m not doing this alone.
Like always, Wade is going to be with me every step of the way.