Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 153268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 766(@200wpm)___ 613(@250wpm)___ 511(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 153268 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 766(@200wpm)___ 613(@250wpm)___ 511(@300wpm)
I was so overwhelmed with emotions, I threw my arms around his neck and began sobbing into his ugly Christmas sweater. “I love you so much.” I hiccupped into his chest, not so demurely, I suspected. “I’m just…I can’t even explain it.” Another bout of tears emerged.
“Is everything okay?” Mom called out from the living room.
“Row, are you breaking up with her?” Dylan sounded pissed. “Or, let’s be honest, is she breaking up with you? Because I can totally yell at her for you.”
“She’s fine,” Row growled to our guests, gathering me in his arms, holding me tight. “You are fine, right, Dot? I didn’t mean to upset you. I just thought it would be nice to make it official. And figured that this way, you wouldn’t have to book time in advance. But you don’t look happy at all.” He disconnected from me, frowning deeply into my face. “Look, we can forget about the entire thing. It’s not a problem. I’ll have someone remove it—”
“Don’t you dare.” I pressed my finger to his lips to stop the profanity. “I love it. It’s perfect. I’m just…a little overwhelmed.”
“By how my gift is so much better than yours?” He gave me a cocky once-over.
“Honey, you are not even in the race. Which brings me to my gift to you…” I pulled out an envelope from the back pocket of my mom jeans, handing it to him. “It’s not a gift card, so be careful when you rip it open.”
He eyed me suspiciously as he meticulously and gently peeled the top part of the envelope, slowly tugging out the unmistakable black-and-white printout of ultrasound film. His eyes flared, and the rest of him turned into a pillar of salt. Oh no. Was he going to burst into tears now too?
“I know we haven’t discussed it,” I hurried to say, licking my lips. “And I know that it is way too early, with both of us so focused on our careers. I don’t know how it happened. I guess…I guess I forgot to take a few pills. Are you mad?” I bit my lower lip.
It was hard to tell, since Row’s usual expression was IDGAF. He wore it so well, he’d never bothered to develop any other faces. It was as eternal as a little black dress. Which, I bet, he’d look good in too. God, my husband was infuriating.
“Mad?” he repeated wryly.
“You know, that it wasn’t planned.”
“Dot, baby.” He took the long ultrasound film that showed a very blurry little dot—Dot Junior—wrapping it along the back of my neck and tugging me closer with it so our lips touched. “You’ll never be able to top this Christmas present in a million years, so don’t even try.”
“I won, didn’t I?” I winked.
“The Christmas gift competition? But, Dot, you’re my biggest win.”
He kissed me long and deep, in a way every girl deserved to be kissed. Many times. By the boy she loved.
And the next morning, we woke up for our joint morning run. With our feet pounding the pavement, the winter sun warming our faces, I tipped my head up and smiled at Dad, who was somewhere up there beyond the clouds.
“My hair tips are orange today, Dadushka,” I whispered. “Because I’m finally happy.”
The End