A Blast from the Past (A Second Chance Romance) (28 page)

It
was Thanksgiving weekend, and Z was staying for four days. He had no
idea the long weekend he was in for. He was flying in Thanksgiving
afternoon. I helped his mom cook dinner for all of us. He called when
his plane landed, and we had dinner waiting for when he walked in the
door. The kids ran to him and wrapped their arms around him. I walked
over to see him once they were able to pull themselves away. He had a
huge smile on his face the entire time.

"This
time next month I'll have my woman home with me. We'll all be
together. Almost all of his," he said, as he rubbed my belly.

We
all had an amazing night together. The kids were so happy Z was going
to be there to read their stories. I let them know that once we moved
I was still going to read some nights.

The
next morning, Zander went with me to the bakery. We had everything we
needed to take one of our final steps toward being together. It
wasn't easy. I had tears in my eyes when I walked through the door
and looked around. He held me in his arms and asked if I was sure
about what we were doing. I teared up even more when he said he was
still willing to move his life so I could keep it. I nodded and took
a deep breath. We walked into the back to find Carla, covered in
flour, working away. She smiled when she saw us.

"It's
so good to you, Zander," she said. "Did you have a good
holiday?"

"Yes,"
he said. "It was perfect."

I
motioned for Carla to have a seat. She looked worried as she sat
down.

"Did
you sell it?" she asked.

"What?"
I asked.

"You
both came in here. He hasn't been in here in over a month. You have
tears in your eyes. I've only been able to come up with ten thousand
dollars. I'm not going to be able to get a loan. You're about to tell
me you sold it, aren't you?"

"No,"
I said. "That's not what we are here to tell you at all. It's
good news actually."

"Really?"
she asked.

"We've
been talking. I've watched you for months. You are amazing. I've
watched you go from running the register and baking to running the
entire place. You bake all morning and run things during the day. You
have the same passion I did. When I was younger, I wanted to own this
place. I told the owner at least once a week that I was going to own
it one day. When it was time to sell, I couldn't afford it. There was
no way I was going to have my dream. I knew I would work my ass off
if I could somehow find a way to get it. Out of nowhere, the owner
cut the price in half. She told me she had to move. I could afford
half. That was four amazing years ago. I worked in this place for
years before that. You've been with me for four years Carla. You are
an amazing young woman. Do you know what I found out a few months
back?"

"What?"
Carla asked.

"I
found out that the price was never cut in half."

"Then
how did you get it? You only paid half," she said.

"There
is this amazing man who was my best friend in high school that hadn't
been a part of my life in years. He paid the other half without me
knowing. It took me four years to find out. He believed in me and
knew it was my dream to own this place."

Carla
looked up at Zander.

"That
is the sweetest thing I've ever heard," she said.

"I
know," I said. "I couldn't decide if I wanted to kick his
ass or hug him for it. You need this place. It's supposed to be yours
next."

Zander
handed me the papers that were in his hands and the keys. I slid them
over to her.

"I
don't understand. I can't pay you enough," she said.

"I
know that," I said. "Here are the papers you need and my
two sets of keys. You're the new owner of the bakery. It's yours.
Maybe one day you'll be able to do something to help someone else."

"There
is no way. You can't do this for me. I've got ten thousand for you,"
she said, with tears falling like a river from her eyes.

"Use
it to make the business grow. You have amazing ideas. I have no doubt
that you'll be able to double your business. I'm proud of you. We
want you to have it. I'm moving on to the next stage in my life. I
want you to make it your own."

She
jumped from her chair and wrapped her arms around both of us.

"I
can't believe you guys would do this for me. Nobody has ever done
anything for me before. Is this real?"

"It
is," Z said from behind me.

We
all talked for a little while before I was ready to go. When I got in
the car and he closed the door behind me, I knew we'd made the right
decision. She was going to do amazing things with the place.

"You
okay?" he asked when he got in.

"I'm
perfect," I said.

The
following morning, Carol asked Zander to take her Christmas shopping.
He didn't want to do it. I told him it would only be a month and we
would be living together. He wasn't going to see his mom as much, and
she was going to miss him. He finally agreed to go with her. I don't
know what I would've done if he hadn't.

As
soon as they were gone, we got to work. I had people from the town
chipping in to help make it happen. We were in place with the kids
when I saw the car pull up. I was hoping so badly that I had made the
right decision. I didn't want him to be disappointed.

When
they walked in the house and closed the door, I knew it would only be
a short time before he would be on his way back to our spot.

Zander

My
mom had me shopping a large part of the day. It was driving me crazy
to be away from Livie and the kids. I knew she was right. Once they
moved to New York, I wouldn't be home to visit much. We both tried to
get our moms to come with us, but neither of them wanted to move. We
knew they would have each other right next door. I knew it was going
to be hard on Livie not having her mom there to help her. She was
going to be home with the kids, so I was hoping that would help to
make things easier for her.

When
we finally pulled into the driveway, I was exhausted. I ran into the
house to do a few things. I planned on spending the rest of my time
next door. As soon as I walked in the door, I saw a note on the table
in front of me.

Z,

I
hope you had a great time shopping with your mom. We missed you. Go
upstairs to your room. I have something for you. Please, for once,
follow directions.

Love,

Livie

I
shook my head at her smart-ass comment and walked upstairs. The day
seemed to go on forever while I was with my mom. I couldn't wait to
see Livie and the kids. My bedroom door was closed. When I opened it,
there were balloons floating through my room. Each of them had a love
message on them. On the other side of the room, hanging from the
closet door, was a very nice suit. There was a card attached to it,
so I walked over to read it.

Z,

There
are sixteen balloons floating freely through your room. Each one
represents a year of my life without you in it. Those were the
hardest years of my life. We both went on to follow our dreams only
to be led back to the same spot our friendship began. You always were
the one that kept me grounded. You are my everything. I love you so
much. I remember the first time I saw you. You were the cutest boy I
had ever seen. That was the beginning of the most amazing
relationship in my life.

Please
put on this suit and go back downstairs.

I
love you so much,

Livie

I had
no idea what she had planned. Maybe she was taking me out to dinner,
I thought. Either way, I needed to get to her. I couldn't wait
another moment to see her. Every second I was home with her and the
kids was precious. In one month, we would finally be together.

I
quickly changed into the suit and slipped into the shoes that were on
the floor beneath it. She said to go back down. I ran my fingers
through my hair, looked in the mirror, and walked down to find April
and Jack dressed up and waiting for me. They looked so adorable, as
they stood there with huge smiles. April handed me a card and
giggled. I shook my head and opened it.

Z,

If
you followed my directions, this is your final card. You are the
sweetest, most loving, and sexiest man I have ever met, and you are
mine. I love you so much and hope that you love me half as much as I
love you. Please come and meet me in our spot. It's the place we
first connected and talk for hours. It's the place I spent the most
important moments of high school. It's the place where I fell in love
and knew my life would never be the same again.

Do
you remember what I told you the first day we met?

I
love you so much, Z. I'll be waiting for you.

Love,

Livie

I
took their hands in mine and we walked through the backyard.

"You
both look very nice," I said.

"Mommy
said we can't play with you right now. We're in our nice clothes,"
Jack said.

I
couldn't help but laugh.

"I
told her you play in your nice clothes, but she said we couldn't
today," he said.

"We'll
play later," I said, as I looked down at him.

He
smiled and nodded. April pulled at my hand.

"We
need to go," she said.

She
was just like Livie. I smiled and followed her lead. When I looked up
at saw Livie standing at the entrance to the woods, my breath caught.
She looked so beautiful. Her dress was pink and flowed perfectly from
her body. She looked radiant. The smile on her face made melted my
heart.

Looking
at the perfect, selfless woman in front of made had my head spinning.
One question after another ran through my mind. Would she be happy
with me? Was I good enough for her? Was I good enough to be a father
to our three kids? I could operate on people with the steadiest hand,
but as I walked closer to her, my hands began shaking. I didn't want
to disappoint the three of them. Would I be the husband she deserved?
I never wanted to hurt Livie. It was my job to protect and care for
her. Could I be everything she wanted and needed? I knew she was
everything to me. There was never a day that went by that I didn't
think about being with her. I knew that I would do whatever it took
to give her the life she deserved.

I
wasn't sure what she had planned, but I couldn't wait another second
to hold her. As soon as I got to her, she reached out her hands to
take mine.

"I
love you so much, Z. I hope you know how much you mean to me. You
always have. You're it for me. It's always been you. We can't wait
another minute to bring you into our crazy, busy, loud, and loving
family. We talked so many times about our wedding. Each time you told
me you wanted me to have exactly what I wanted. All I want is to have
you by my side. No matter how many times I thought about marrying you
over the years, my mind always came back to here. So many important
things happened here. This is it, the perfect spot. Will you make the
happiest woman alive and marry me right here, right now?"

I
looked into her eyes and fell even more in love with her.

"I
can't think of a better time or place to make you mine, Livie. You
make me happier than I have ever been. I'm going to be the best damn
husband there is. I'm going to take care of you and our kids every
day for the rest of my life. I want nothing more than to make you my
wife right here, right now."

I
took her face and kissed her. She took my hand and walked into the
woods. April was at her side, and Jack was at mine. I couldn't
believe what I was seeing. She had done so much. There were lights
everywhere. It looked like stars in the sky. She had chairs for
family and friends. There was music playing. We all stood together as
we professed our love to each other. Livie was so beautiful. I
couldn't have imagined a more prefect wedding. There were so many
memories surrounding us there. It was the best moment of my life. We
became a family.

The
next month flew by. Livie and the kids had done a great job labeling
all of the moving boxes. They arrived a week before my family. I had
everything unpacked and put away before they got there. We wanted the
kids to have an easy transition.

I
showed up at the airport and waited at the baggage claim. They had
each checked a bag, and I wanted to get them before Livie started
tossing them around. The bags got there before they did. It made me
laugh. I could see Livie and the kids shopping around in the stores
on the way out of the airport. When I saw her, I knew my eyes lit up.
They were there. My family was finally there. I ran to them like it
had been months since seeing them. It was the best feeling in the
world to wrap my arms around all of them.

They
were moved in two weeks before Christmas. I hadn't decorated the tree
yet. The day after they arrived, we decorated it together. Livie sat
in the chair with her feet up, while the kids placed the ornaments
where they wanted them. When it was finished, we watched a holiday
movie and had popcorn and cocoa.

I
looked around the place. It was perfect. We were all curled up
together on the couch. It wasn't quiet or spotless. The kids had
already made it home. There were toys on the floor and books with
crayons on the table. It was nothing like it used to be, and I
wouldn't have had it any other way. I looked over at the tree. The
decorations were all on the lower half. I looked up at the bare spot
and laughed.

"We
can move them around later," Livie whispered in my ear.

"No,"
I said with a smile. "It's perfect."

"Seriously,"
she said. "My mom always filled in the top of the tree."

"We
aren't moving one thing. That is their tree. Each year, more and more
of the tree will be filled in. I like it just the way it is."