Page 85 of Second Act

Blair holds her hand out to admire the ring. She didn’t even look at it before tackling me, and I’m afraid I may go down again once she has a peek. It’s a two-carat princess cut diamond on a platinum band, with two one-carat princess cut diamonds on each side, representing our past, the present, and the future to come.

The tears well up in her eyes, and I swipe my thumb across her cheek to catch them as they begin to drop.

“Happy tears, I hope?” I ask.

“This ring. It’s so gorgeous. It’s perfect.”

I hand over her glass of champagne and raise mine for a toast.

“To Mr. and Mrs. Bradford.” I pause for a minute and look at her. “You don’t have to change your name.”

“I can’t wait to be Mrs. Bradford.”

We sip our champagne, but before we finish, Blair stands.

“Let’s go inside, Mr. Bradford. I’d like to practice for our wedding night, husband.”

“Anything you want, wife.” I lean forward to kiss her and then give her a wink as I say, “Maybe we can leave only the heels on tonight.”

I know there will never be a better feeling than this. She’s my one and only. She always has been.