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“He looks just like you,” Pops tells me.
“No,” A-Ma disagrees. “He look like his dad.”
“Have you two decided on a name yet?” Delilah inquires, peering down at the boy like he’s the most precious thing in the world. If this were a cartoon, this is the scene where her frozen heart grows three sizes and breaks the viewfinder. There’s a real sweetness behind her eyes, a small smile upon her lips. It’s the warmest I’ve ever seen Delilah be.
Nate and I exchange a look, grinning at one another.
“Everyone,” he says softly, “meet Jacob Lee-Winthrop.”
Pops and Delilah stare at us in amazement, mouths falling open just to close shut again. Pops is on the verge of tears, too happy to compute. Delilah, on the other hand, collapses onto the couch beside me. Her eyes are glossed over, which is her version of bawling her eyes out.
“It suits him,” she whispers, kindness overflowing from her words.
“Would you like to hold him?” I ask her.
Delilah breaks out into a full-blown smile. It’s actually really pretty. It’s a rare crack in her otherwise cold and solemn persona. I wonder briefly if she used to smile like this all the time. If she did, I can see why Pops fell in love with her. Delilah’s still got a good heart, the best of intentions. With our pasts behind us, I’m beginning to see more and more of her relaxed side.
She nods and holds her arms out to receive the baby. The handover’s a bit awkward, but that’s my fault. I’m overly cautious as I hand him over, careful of Jacob’s head and neck. I don’t think anybody in the room blames me, though. Delilah scoops him up and cradles him close.
“Hello, little one,” she says, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she smiles even wider. “Hello, Jacob.”
They look absolutely darling together.
It’s then, and only then, that I realize our parents have decorated the house with all sorts of streamers and blue balloons. There’s a banner over the mantel that reads in all capital letters: IT’S A BOY! There’s even a celebratory cake sitting in clear view on the kitchen table. The scent of dark roast coffee wafts into the air, makes the whole house smell like a café. I don’t know why I didn’t notice everything before.
It’s because I’m still sleep deprived.
Nate taps me on the shoulder, leaning in to whisper in my ear. “Can I talk to you outside for a sec?” He sounds pretty serious, so I nod right away.
“Sure.”
“We’ll be in the backyard,” Nate tells everyone.
Our parents are too busy with Jacob to pay us any mind. They make a wide range of faces at the baby in an attempt to get him to react. He just stares up at them in wide-eyed amazement. Everything is so new to Jacob that I’m concerned we may overstimulate him, but Pops, Delilah, and A-Ma have raised children of their own, so I know he’s in good hands.
I think Nate is thinking the same thing too. He chuckles and takes my hand, guiding me through the kitchen to step out onto our back patio. He closes the door firmly behind him before turning to me.
He gestures to the couch on the patio. It’s a beautiful day outside. The grass in our backyard is covered in a misty layer of morning dew. Off in the distance, birds sing their songs from the safety of their nests. I can hear the low rumble of the occasional car driving through the neighborhood. It’s chilly, so we sit down together, leaning into each other’s warmth.
“What’s up?” I ask. “Everything okay?”
He clasps my hands in his own and looks deep into my eyes. “Everything’s perfect,” he answers. “More than perfect, actually.”
“I’m glad.”
“Things are about to get pretty crazy, so I wanted to ask you something while we have a moment of peace.”
He reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out a small ring box made of burgundy velvet. The jewelry store logo is etched into the top in gold.
My heart skips a beat as the air is knocked from my lungs, the realization of what’s happening sending a ticklish chill down my spine.
“Nate?”
He opens the box to reveal the gorgeous diamond ring inside. It’s beautiful in its simplicity—a giant diamond bordered by a pair of smaller diamonds on either side on a slim platinum band. The gems sparkle brightly to the point that it’s almost blinding. I don’t even want to think about how much it cost him.
“I meant to propose while we were at the bed and breakfast,” he explains. “I had a whole thing organized. We were going to dine under the moonlight. I even had Mrs. McBrindle order us some sparkling apple juice. There was a prepared speech, too, but I forgot everything I was going to say. Jacob kind of threw a wrench in my original plans.”
