Chapter 8

After celebrating the pregnancy, the most important thing on my mind is to go to Meg"s parents and give them the news. At the same time, I want to ask for Meg"s hand even though Meghan has already accepted my declaration of marriage. She still thinks I"m bad at romance, and maybe I am, but I wasn"t going to debate whether we would get married. We"re building a family together. Marriage features heavily in that beautiful dream.

I should confess that I"m terrified of marriage after losing the one person I thought of as my soulmate, but I"ve been blessed with a second chance, and I"m going to take it, no questions asked. We"re on our way to Meg"s parent"s house, and both Meg and I are brimming with excitement. We have the "gift" for Meg"s mom and dad, and I"ve got the ring in my pocket. Meg doesn"t know that part.

Meg has her hand draped across my thigh, and she squeezes me softly when the house comes into view. I park in the driveway and make Meg wait until I round the car and get her from the passenger side. She loves it when I"m a gentleman and says it"s a complete 180 from the beast I become in the bedroom. My chest puffs out at the words every time I hear them.

We"re walking towards the house when the door opens, and Angela, Meg"s mom, waves at us enthusiastically. She was very supportive of our relationship and was able to soothe Lee into acceptance. I think our present will help him welcome me into the family.

"Hi Angela, you look wonderful."

"Thanks, Noah. Meg, it"s so good to see you two together. Come in, please!"

She hugs her daughter and ushers us inside the house. We follow her, and she takes us out onto the patio, where a wonderful breakfast is displayed at the table. I really hope Meg doesn"t get nauseous now, or the cat will be out of the bag. Meg hugs her father, and I shake hands with him. His grip is a little tighter than usual, so I"m not out of the doghouse just yet. I can take it. I would be the same if it were one of my daughters.

Once pleasantries are exchanged, I help Meghan to her seat and sit beside her. We wait until everyone else is seated, and then Meg pops out the box holding our baby picture. It"s wrapped beautifully in pastel colors, and the tag says "Open Me."

"I have something for you guys." She waves the box at her parents.

She hands the wrapped gift to her mother and giggles. Meg"s happiness is contagious and her parents give her a big smile. When her mother finally opens the box, she gasps.

"Oh! What"s this?"

"That"s your first grandbaby, Mom. We"re pregnant."

A lot of expressions cross Lee"s face when he hears the news, but he can"t seem to look away from the picture. He becomes teary-eyed.

"And this is my cue to ask you, Lee, for your daughter"s hand in marriage."

He nods but doesn"t say anything. Getting up, he goes to where Meg is and pulls her out of the chair and into his arms. They hug and laugh together, and then her mom joins them in a family hug. Meg invites me in, and I join what I imagine will be many more family huddles in the future. When we all break apart, Lee offers his hand to me, and I take it.

"You have my blessing to marry my daughter." He says.

"Thank you," I say while showing him the box I have hidden in my shirt pocket. His smile grows bigger.

When Meg's mom goes back to her seat, I grab Meg and kneel in front of her. I open the velvet box and smile up at her.

"Meg, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

"Oh my God, Noah. Yes, of course, yes."

She pulls me up and grabs my face in her hands. Her lips are soft, and they taste like strawberries.

"Let me put the ring on your finger, baby girl."

Meg offers me her hand, and I place the ring on her finger. She"ll be mine soon, and I can"t wait for it to happen.

Meg and I are in each other"s arms, dancing to the soft music the band is playing. We just got married and are at the reception celebrating our wedded bliss. Mae has come for a visit, and I"m excited to have all my children in one place at this moment in time. Meg"s BFFs are all dancing and enjoying the party. Alice is pregnant, like Meg, another Vegas baby. The other women are in different stages of bliss with the men they found in Las Vegas.

"I"m so happy this day is finally here, Noah. I love you so much. I shouldn"t have waited so long to kiss you and make you fall for me."

"Sometimes I wonder the same thing, baby girl. But I think we weren"t ready before. We needed things to click at the right moment. It took me a while to recover from losing Anna, and you were busy with your studies. This is the perfect moment, Meg. And we"re finally together."

We dance for the longest time and then I grab her hand and take her over to the stage where the band is playing. I need the microphone. I want to tell everyone in the world that we"re pregnant. I tell the band they can take a break and step up to the microphone.

"Hi everyone. I know we"ve done all the toasts – thanks Lee – and everything, but we have more news to share." There"s a rumble around the room. Some key people already know, like Meghan"s besties. "It is my joy to share with you that a new Richards will be born in about six more months. We"re in our first trimester, and Meg has finally stopped barfing every single morning."

Everyone claps, and people start getting up from their seats to come and congratulate us. I"m the happiest man in the world, and my beautiful wife is by my side. When things slow down, my daughters come and congratulate me once more. They already knew about the baby and carried the sonogram with them as well. I noticed Mae was a little sad, so I asked Meg to give me a second and pull my daughter aside.

"Hey, Sweet Pea. What"s going on?"

"Hey, Daddy. I"m so happy for you. Meg"s amazing. She and I have been talking a lot lately, and I"ve decided to apply for college at Julliard. I"ve got my audition tape ready and everything."

"You"re coming back to New York?"

"Yes, things were not working out as expected in Las Vegas, so I think it"s time I came back home."

"Oh, Mae. That makes me really happy. But I"ve talked to Meg a lot as well, and I"m here for you, whatever you decide to do. As long as we can always be there for each other, that"s all I ask. I love you, Sweet Pea."

"Thanks, Daddy."

I hugged her and then went looking for my wife. She's a miracle worker, and I need to thank her immediately. I see her on the dance floor with her father and wait for the song to end. She comes to me as soon as she's free, a smile on her face.

"Hello, husband." She says as she walks into my arms.

"Hello, wife. It seems I need to thank you once again for making me the happiest man in the world today. Mae told me you talked her into coming back to New York."

"Oh, I wouldn"t do that. I just helped her evaluate where she is right now and figure out where she wants to be. She"s a smart girl. Takes after her father."

"Thanks, my love. Have we decided on a name for our baby boy?"

"Yup, Malcolm Lee Richards. But let's not tell anyone. I want it to be our secret." I lift the hand where her rings are and place a kiss on top of them.

"To all the secrets we can share and a beautiful life together."

"If I could drink, I would drink to that. I love you, Noah."

"I love you, Meghan."

We spend the rest of the night dancing in each other"s arms and whispering romantic promises into each other"s ears.